KEY WORDS AND PHRASES
Below is a
glossary of key terms and phrases you should know by the end of your A Level or
IB English course.
It is a work
in progress and will be amended and updated through the academic year.
Being able to use appropriate terminology in your work is an essential part of your course of study. Building up your confidence in using these terms will help increase your ability to achieve a high grade in your subject.
As part of
your work as a student of English it is your responsibility to draw up your own
glossary of terms. Add and amend it as you progress through the course.
There are
many published and online glossaries available to you already. You can find
glossaries usually at the end of course books. You can put key words into
google and search for definitions.
Your own
personal glossary will help you own your course of study. It will give you control and power over this
subject.
KEY WORD / PHRASE
|
DEFINITION
|
ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK
|
EXAMPLE
|
Abstract nouns
|
are
words that name ideas or concepts that do not have a physical body
|
Linguistic analysis, grammar
|
Love,
justice
|
Adjective
|
A
describing word that modifies a noun
|
Linguistic analysis - grammar
|
The
water was warm
|
Adverb
|
a word that modifies a verb -
usually ends 'ly'
|
Linguistic analysis - grammar
|
‘painfully’,
‘joyfully’
|
Adverbial
|
A word or phrase that
indicates a place or time
|
Linguistic analysis - grammar
|
‘yesterday’
‘behind the tractor’
|
Analysis
|
Detailed
examination of the elements or structure of a text, typically as a basis for
discussion or interpretation.
|
All
|
See
relevant course blog posts for examples
|
Antonym
|
A
word with an opposite meaning to another word
|
The
word ‘quiet’ is the antonym to ‘loud’. ‘Light’ is the antonym of ‘dark’
|
|
Alliteration
|
the
quick repetition of the sound of the opening syllable of a series of words
|
Literary analysis – phonetic poetic
|
‘a
dark, drawing, down’
|
Assonance
|
the repeated vowel sound from
the middle of a word
|
Literary analysis – phonetic poetic
|
‘about
a shower’
|
Asyndetic listing
|
A list that does not use
conjunctions. [A list that uses conjunctions is a syndetic list]
|
‘no
less than life, with grace, health, beauty, honour;’
|
|
Audience
|
The
target group of people a writer has aimed to address in their writing.
|
Linguistic analysis
|
|
Characterisation
|
Characterisation
is the art of creating characters for a narrative. Characters are created by
description, through their actions, speech, or thoughts. Also established by
other characters.
|
Literary analysis – prosaic
|
|
Colloquialism
|
Language that is generally
informal - casual and familiar – maybe determined by region, age, class or
ethnicity
|
All
|
|
Complex sentence
|
Is a sentence that includes
one main clause and at least one subordinate clause
|
Linguistic, syntax framework
|
He
tried, despite reports to the contrary, and not always to be trusted,to be
the best teacher he could be.
|
Compound sentence
|
A sentence that includes two
simple main clauses often linked by a connective.
|
Linguistic, syntax framework
|
He
tried to be the best teacher he could be but his health always limited what
he could achieve.
|
Concrete nouns
|
are words that refer to
specific objects
|
Linguistic analysis, grammar
|
Table,
engine, hand, sea
|
Connotation
|
The associated meaning of a
word or the feelings or ideas that a word suggests
|
Red:
passion, love, danger, violence, lust
|
|
Context
|
Linked
to setting. This term usually relates to the relationship between a text, its
author and the society it was produced or created in. It can relate to the
relationship between a text and other similar texts.
|
All
|
|
Courtly love
|
A
genre of poetry developed in Italy in the middle ages. It has hugely affected
love stories presented in drama and prose up to the present day. Key features
of this genre include
·
A beloved – [a woman] unobtainable – usually
because she is already married or in a higher social class
·
At some point realises she is loved by the
lover
·
She responds to him with pity
·
A lover – [a man] unable to tell his beloved
of his feelings
·
Experiences love as if it was a deadly
illness
·
Expresses his love through writing love
poetry / songs – never sent but perhaps performed or distributed or love expressed
through undergoing tasks dedicated to the beloved. For example – jousting,
crusading.
·
Courtly love is never consummated and often
ends in death.
·
A key feature is the expression and maintaining
of romantic or sexual desire
·
There are elements of courtly love in
Othello both Rodrigo and Cassio are
cast as courtly lovers to the beloved Desdemona and Gatsby’s relationship to
Daisy contains elements of courtly love – Daisy is unobtainable, Gatsby sets himself
the task of making himself equal to her through the accumulation of material
wealth
|
||
Declarative sentence
|
A
sentence that communicates information or asserts an opinion
|
Linguistic syntax
framework
|
This
insert forms part of a glossary of key terms.
|
Denotation
|
The
literal or primary meaning of a word, in contrast to the feelings or ideas
that the word suggests – [connotation]
|
Linguistic analysis, lexis
|
Bicycle: A vehicle composed of two wheels held in a frame one
behind the other, propelled by pedals and steered with handlebars attached to
the...
|
Exclamative sentence
|
A
sentence that communicates an intense emotional or heightened statement
|
Linguistic, syntax framework
|
This
is a fantastic glossary!
|
Frameworks
|
An
analytical approach to a text
|
Mostly linguistic analysis
|
|
Fricative
|
a
type of consonant made by the friction of breath in a narrow opening,
producing a turbulent air flow.
|
Linguistic analysis, spoken word, poetic phonetic framework
|
A
consonant made in this way, for example f, sh, m, v and th.
|
Genre
|
A
type of text
|
There
are many different kinds of genres and sub-genres in writing. We often divide the prose genre
into fiction and nonfiction prose. And nonfiction prose can be divided into
sub-genres such as biography and autobiography, scientific writing and
journalistic writing. Journalistic writing can be further divided into
sub-genres such as polemical, editorial, obituary, reviews, interviews,
column. In literature we refer to prose,
poetry and drama. And likewise
there are sub-genres within these literary genres, such as in drama we have
comedy and tragedy. In fiction we have crime, romance, adventure, horror,
science fiction
|
|
Grammar
|
The study of how words and their component parts combine to form
sentences.
|
Linguistic analysis
|
Focus
on verbs, nouns and adjectives, suffix, prefix, [in]definite articles,
|
High frequency lexis
|
words
that are commonly used
|
Linguistic, lexical analysis framework
|
|
Imagery
|
language
that creates strong visual images in the mind of a reader
|
Literary, imagery
analysis framework
|
He
was a lion in the fight. She was like an angel. The sea swallowed him at one
great gulp.
|
Imperative sentences
|
are
sentences that give orders or give instructions
|
Linguistic, syntax framework
|
Don’t
read this glossary anymore.
|
Informal Register
|
written or spoken
language that could be described as a casual, familiar, and
generally colloquial
|
Linguistic, lexical framework
|
|
Interrogative sentences
|
An interrogative sentence is a
sentence that asks specific questions
|
Linguistic, syntax framework
|
Are
you happy? – closed question – Do you know this animal? No – Don’t Know –
Know – restricted question. How do you feel today? – open question
|
Language
|
A
term synonymous with linguistics
|
Linguistic analysis
|
|
Linguistics
|
The
scientific study of language – spoken and written
|
Linguistic
analysis uses a variety of analytical tools to analyse language. We call
these frameworks. These include; grammar, register, lexis, rhetoric and
syntax
|
|
Literature
|
The
artistic study of prose, drama and poetry
|
Literary
analysis uses two main frameworks. These are phonology - sound techniques
such as alliteration, assonance, rhyme, rhythm. And imagery – mental pictures
such as metaphor, simile, personification and symbolism
|
|
Low frequency lexis
|
words that are rarely used in every
day speech |
Linguistic, lexical analysis
|
establishmentarianism
Limpid,
|
Metaphor
|
A
metaphor is a literary term
that describes a subject by asserting that it is, on some point of
comparison, the same as another otherwise unrelated object.
|
Literary analysis – prosaic, poetic, dramatic
Imagery
|
“All
the world’s a stage”
“He
was a lion in the fight”
|
Narrator
|
Literary analysis
|
||
Narrative perspective
|
All
|
||
Nouns
|
Naming
words – objects are concrete nouns, ideas are
abstract nouns and pronouns are words that takes the place of nouns
|
Linguistic analysis - grammar
|
Objects
are concrete nouns – such as ‘table’, ideas or concepts are abstract nouns - such as ‘love’, ‘justice’ and ‘beauty’.
Pronouns are words that take the
place of nouns – such as ‘it’
|
Onomatopoeia
|
a word drawn from a sound
associated with what is named
|
Literary analysis - phonetic
|
Examples
include ‘crash’, ‘tick’, ‘plop’,
|
Pathetic fallacy
|
The attribution of human emotions or
characteristics to nature – commonly weather.
|
||
Personification
|
bestowing
human characteristics to inanimate objects
|
Literary analysis - imagery
|
|
Phonology
|
The
science of sound. The use of sounds in texts. Sound patterning
|
Linguistic analysis
|
|
Plosive
|
A
plosive is a speech sound where a consonant
is produced by stopping the airflow using the lips, teeth, or palate,
followed by a sudden release of air..
|
Linguistic analysis, spoken word, poetic phonetic framework
|
The
basic plosives in English are d, t, k, g and p
|
Plot
|
Literary analysis
|
||
Pre modifying
|
a
word that modifies a noun. It’s placed before a noun
|
Linguistic grammatical analysis
|
‘the
old, bare and frail tree’
|
Proper names
|
a noun that denotes a particular
thing; usually capitalized
|
Kevin,
Manchester
|
|
Post modifying
|
a
word that modifies a noun. It’s placed after a noun
|
Linguistic grammatical analysis
|
‘the
tree, old, bare and frail’
|
Purpose
|
|||
Polysyllabic
|
words of more than one syllable -
but usually three or four syllables |
Linguistic lexical analysis
|
|
Register
|
Linguistic analysis
|
||
Rhetoric
|
A
variety of techniques used to persuade
|
Mostly linguistic analysis
|
|
Setting
|
Literary analysis
|
||
Simile
|
A
simile is a term that directly compares
two different things, usually by employing the words "like" or
"as”.
A
simile differs from a metaphor in that a metaphor compares two unlike things
by saying that the one thing is the
other thing.
|
Literary analysis - imagery
|
‘He
is as cold as ice’
|
Simple sentence
|
A
sentence that contains one main clause
|
Linguistic analysis syntax framework
|
She
was a genius.
|
Slang
|
unconventional lexis regarded
as very informal often using metaphor, more common in spoken language
|
Linguistic analysis spoken word framework – represented in prose
|
|
Structure
|
Literary analysis
|
||
Symbolism
|
The use of symbols to represent
ideas or qualities.
|
Literary analysis – imagery
|
|
Synonym
|
A word with similar or exact
meaning to another word
|
Linguistic analysis lexis framework
|
A
synonym for silence is ‘hush’ or ‘quiet’
|
Syndetic listing
|
A list with one or more
conjunctions [A list that does not use conjunctions is called an asyndectic
list]
|
Linguistic analysis syntax
|
The
good, the bad and the ugly
|
Syntax
|
The
study of the structure and function of
sentences
|
Linguistic analysis
|
Within
syntax we can consider sentence structure – short, compound and complex. And
consider sentence function – declarative, exclamative, interrogative and
imperative.
|
Taboo words
|
Profanity - a word, which is socially unacceptable or
offensive
|
For
example ‘fuck’
|
|
Text
|
All
|
||
Themes
|
All
|
||
Verbs
|
Words
that denote action
|
Linguistic analysis - grammar
|
Examples
include skipped, stuttered, ticking, pulled,
|
