PSSA TERMS
You know you like them…
Literary Devices /Features
/Techniques:
• Dialogue- a conversation between
characters *Uses quotes
• Flashback- details in a story that
provide information about something
that took place before the story takes
place
• Foreshadowing- hints or clues given
to the reader about events that may
happen later in the story
Literary Devices /Features/
Techniques:- continued
• Symbolism / Symbol- an image or object that
stands for an idea beyond its dictionary meaning
– Ex: heart = love, flag = freedom
• Allusion- a reference to a familiar person, place,
or event
– Ex: Noah, MLK, Zeus
• Irony-the use of a word or phrase to mean the
exact opposite of its usual meaning
– Ex: *Far Side comic
Elements of Fiction / Literary
Elements:
•
Characterization- reveals a character to
the reader
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Character’s thoughts, words, actions- indirect
Other character’s thoughts, words, actionsindirect
What the narrator reveals- direct
Elements of Fiction / Literary
Elements:- continued
• Plot- the sequence of events / what happens to the
characters
• Rising Action- plot details that develop the
conflict
• Climax- the moment when the conflict is at its
most intense point
• Resolution- the conflict is resolved and the moral
is typically revealed; the final outcome
Elements of Fiction / Literary
Elements:- continued
Plot Structure
(turning point)
(Conflict)
(Resolution)
Elements of Fiction / Literary
Elements:- continued
• Conflict / Problem- the story problem
– Ex. Person vs. Person, Person vs. Self, Person vs.
Nature
• Mood- the overall feelings /emotions of the story
• Setting- the time & place of the story
• Tone- the author’s attitude towards the reader and
characters
– Ex: serious or humorous
• Theme- the life lesson or moral (broad)
[THE[ME]SSAGE]
Poetry:
•
Alliteration- the repetition of initial consonant
sounds in neighboring words
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Onomatopoeia- a word used to represent a
sound
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Ex: Peter Piper picked
Ex: smack, hiss, pop
Speaker- the person the reader is supposed to
imagine is talking (don’t assume the author is
the speaker)
Figurative Language:
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Hyperbole- an exaggeration or overstatement
–
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Idiomatic Language- a saying that cannot be
understood if taken literally
–
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Ex: I’m so hungry I could eat a horse!
Ex: It’s raining cats and dogs.
Imagery- descriptive words that allow you to
see, hear, smell, feel, and taste what you are
reading
–
Ex: The bubbling, oozing-over cherry pie sat on the
table releasing its sweet, rich scent.
Figurative Language:- continued
• Metaphor- a comparison of two things that does
not use the words “like” or “as”
– Ex: Her hands were ice cubes.
• Personification- giving human characteristics to
nonhuman things
– Ex: The leaves danced across the lawn.
• Simile- a comparison of two things using “like” or
“as”
– Ex: Her hands were as cold as ice.
Genre:
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autobiography- a story of a person’s life
written by himself or herself
biography- a story of a person’s life
written by someone other than that person
fiction- any story that is made up by the
author (not true)
nonfiction- any written work that is based
on facts (true)
Types of Text:
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expository- text written to provide
information about a topic
informational- synonym to expository
narrative- text that tells a story
poetry- text that aims to present ideas and
stir up emotional experience; can have
various layers of meaning
Author:
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author’s purpose- the reason the author is writing such as
to explain, describe, entertain, persuade, inform, or
convince
style- how an author writes; an author’s use of language
(more to do with purpose)
bias- a judgment based on a personal point of view
-Ex: beach vs. mountains…Ford vs. Chevy
voice- the personality of the author comes out in the
writing
*** add this one***
propaganda- spreading rumors, ideas, or information in
order to help or hurt an organization or person
Point of View:
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1st person - the narrator is someone in the
story; “I”, “Me”, “Us”
3rd person - the narrator is a bystander
and not involved in the story’s plot;
“them”, “he”, “she”
Text Features:
•
headings, graphics, and charts- any
visual clues on a page that offer additional
information to guide the reader’s
understanding
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headings- bold print that indicates the topic
or theme of the text
graphics- photographs, drawings, maps
charts- condensed data in a series of rows,
lines, or lists
Actions:
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compare- placing together characters,
situations, or ideas to show common or
differing features in literary selections
contrast- to compare differences
differentiate- to tell apart or recognize
differences between two or more items
evaluate- to examine or judge
carefully
Actions:- continued
• infer / inference- to make a judgment
based on reasoning; your understanding
gained by “reading between the lines”
• paraphrase- to restate a text or a passage in
your own words
• summarize- to capture the most important
parts of an original work but to make them
shorter and in your own words
Text Structure:
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cause and effect- cause comes from an action
or event and the effects are what happens as a
result of the action or event
problem / solution- a organizational structure
used in nonfiction where a problem is presented
and possible solutions to it
sequence- details told in order (ex. narrative,
directions, process)
question / answer- similar to problem/solution
except a question is given and then answered (or
possible answers are offered)
Word Meaning:
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antonym- a word that is the opposite of another
word
synonym- a word that is similar to another word
homophone- words pronounced alike but with
different spellings and meanings
multiple-meaning word- words that have
several meanings depending on how they are
used in a sentence
Word Meaning:-continued
• prefix- a group of letters placed before a word to
alter its meaning (ex. in, pre, post)
• suffix- a group of letters placed after a word to
modify its meaning or change its part of speech
(ex. ly, ion, ed, ing, er, ist)
• root word- one to which prefixes and suffixes can
be added to form different words (ex.
help…helpful, helper)
• context clues- information from the reading that
identifies a word or group of words that’s helpful
when figuring out meaning or understanding of
the text
What’s the Topic:
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focus- the center of interest or attention
main idea- the author’s central thought;
the topic sentence of each paragraph
thesis- the topic sentence for an entire
piece of writing that the writer will defend
throughout the written work
Test Words:
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validity- statements that have the
appearance of truth or reality
conclusion- the ending of a story or the
summarization of ideas
generalization- a conclusion, drawn from
specific information, used to make a broad
statement about a topic or person