Literature and Culture: English Vocabulary List

spoken or written language in its usual form, in contrast to poetry

"She prefers prose."

"While the play contained some poetic passages, the majority of the dialogue was written in clear prose."

a type of verse without rhyme that has an irregular rhythm

"Modern free verse poetry."

"Many contemporary poets prefer writing in free verse without traditional rhyme or meter."

a series of lines in a poem, usually with recurring rhyme scheme and meter

"This stanza has four lines."

"Each stanza of the poem contains four lines with an alternating rhyme pattern."

a verse of Italian origin that has 14 lines, usually in an iambic pentameter and a prescribed rhyme scheme

"Shakespeare wrote 154 sonnets about love"

"A sonnet is a short poem with fourteen lines and a specific rhyme scheme."

a tale that is narrated in the form of a song or poem

"He sang a sad ballad."

"A ballad is a form of verse"

the main character in a movie, novel, TV show, etc.

"The protagonist is the main character."

"The protagonist of the novel is a young woman who must overcome many challenges to achieve her dream of becoming a doctor."

the use of words and expressions that are not meant to be taken literally, but rather to create a vivid, imaginative image or effect in the reader's mind

"Rich figurative language used."

"The poet used rich figurative language to create powerful images in the reader's mind."

a literary and rhetorical device that involves repeating words or phrases in successive clauses or sentences, but in reverse order

"Clever antimetabole used."

"The speaker used a clever antimetabole to make his point memorable to the audience."

a literary device where human qualities or characteristics are attributed to non-human entities, objects, or ideas

"The poem used personification to describe the wind."

"The poet used personification when she wrote that the wind whispered secrets through the trees at night."

a statement that implies or indirectly mentions something or someone else, especially as a literary device

"The poem has an allusion to Greek myth."

"The author's subtle allusion to Shakespeare's Hamlet added layers of meaning to the protagonist's tragic dilemma."

a clever or amusing use of words that takes advantage of the multiple meanings or interpretations that it has

"Funny pun made everyone laugh."

"He made a clever pun that made everyone in the room laugh loudly."

a figure of speech that compares two unrelated things to highlight their similarities and convey a deeper meaning

"'The world is a stage' is a famous metaphor by Shakespeare."

"The poet used the metaphor of a "iron cage" to describe how the character felt trapped by the strict rules and expectations of society, unable to escape despite wanting to live a more free and authentic life."

a word or phrase that compares two things or people, highlighting the similarities, often introduced by 'like' or 'as'

"'As brave as a lion' is a classic and child-friendly simile."

"A simile is a figure of speech that explicitly compares two unlike things by using connecting words"

marks and notes written in the margins of a book or document

"Interesting marginalia in book."

"The old book had fascinating marginalia written by previous readers in the margins."

a written account of a person's own life experiences or a particular period in their life

"Personal memoir published."

"She wrote a touching memoir about her experiences growing up in a small village."

the story of the life of a person, written by the same person

"Her autobiography was an instant bestseller."

"After years of hesitation, she finally decided to write her own autobiography to share her inspiring life journey."

a book that combines illustrations and storytelling to convey a narrative, often in a sequential art format

"Popular graphic novel read."

"The graphic novel tells a powerful story using both text and beautiful illustrations."

a cheap paperback novel often featuring an adventure or melodramatic story

"Old dime novel."

"Dime novels were cheap popular stories in the nineteenth century."

a collection of selected writings by various authors, often on a similar theme or subject

"The anthology contains twenty short stories."

"The poetry anthology includes works by many famous writers from different centuries and countries."

an author whose work is published under someone else's name

"Professional ghostwriter hired."

"The famous celebrity hired a professional ghostwriter to write his autobiography."

intending to mock, ridicule, or criticize a person, group, or society in a humorous or exaggerated way

"The show is satirical."

"The satirical article mocked the politician's empty promises and readers laughed at the clever jokes about his failed campaign."

exaggerated or overly emotional in a theatrical or sensational way

"Stop being so melodramatic."

"Stop being so melodramatic about the broken nail because it is really not that serious at all."

to select and extract a passage, segment, or portion from a larger text, usually for reference or quotation

"She excerpted a passage from the book."

"The author decided to excerpt a short passage from her novel to read aloud at the book signing event."

to turn real events or situations into a tale or story, often by changing or adding to the details

"The novel fictionalizes real historical events."

"The novel fictionalizes the true story of a famous historical figure by adding imaginary events and characters."

(grammar) a phrase or word used suddenly to express a particular emotion

"The interjection showed surprise."

"Wow is an interjection that expresses strong emotion and can stand alone as a sentence."

the spoken form of a language specific to a certain region or people which is slightly different from the standard form in words and grammar

"The dialect sounds unique."

"That dialect is spoken in a small region near the coast."

(phonetics) the rising and falling of the voice when speaking

"The intonation changed."

"Rising intonation at the end of a sentence usually indicates a question in English."

a word formed from the initial letters of a phrase, pronounced as a single word

"NASA is the acronym for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration."

"An acronym is a pronounceable word formed from the initial letters of a multi-word name"

a type of abbreviation where the first letter of each word in a phrase or name is used to form a pronounceable acronym-like string of letters

"Common initialism used."

"NATO is a well-known initialism used around the world every day."

the study of the origins and historical developments of words and their meanings

"The etymology of 'telephone' comes from Greek words meaning far sound."

"The etymology of the word "etymology" comes from Greek roots meaning "true sense of a word"."

an expert in the study of language, examining its structure, development, and cultural aspects

"Linguists study how languages work."

"A linguist is a specialist in the scientific study of language"

a collection of ancient myths, particularly one that belongs to a group of people and their history, etc.

"Greek mythology has many gods."

"The ancient Greek mythology is filled with tales of gods and heroes."

a mythological creature in Greek mythology, typically depicted as a fire-breathing creature with the body and head of a lion, the head of a goat protruding from its back, and a serpent for a tail

"Mythical chimera creature."

"The chimera was a terrifying mythical creature with parts of different animals."

a legendary reptile, often depicted as having a deadly gaze or venomous breath

"The legend speaks of a deadly basilisk."

"The basilisk was a legendary creature that could kill with a single glance according to myth."

the traditional beliefs, customs, stories, and legends of a particular community, usually passed down through generations by word of mouth

"Local folklore is rich."

"The story comes from old folklore."

a way of behaving or of doing something that is widely accepted in a society or among a specific group of people

"It is a local custom."

"The annual harvest festival is a deeply ingrained custom that brings the entire community together each year."

a song or poem expressing sadness, especially in the memory of a dead person or a bitter event in the past

"He wrote an elegy."

"The poet composed an elegy for his lost friend."

a group within a larger culture that shares distinctive values, norms, and behaviors, often differing from those of the dominant culture

"Goths are a subculture."

"The punk rock subculture emerged in the 1970s with its own distinct fashion and music."

(of traditions, practices, or customs) respected and followed for a long time because of their enduring value or significance

"The tradition is time-honored."

"The time honored tradition of passing down stories from grandparents to grandchildren keeps family history alive for future generations."

the main female character in a story, book, film, etc., typically known for great qualities

"The heroine saved the day."

"The courageous heroine of the novel saved her family from danger through her clever actions."

a specific story, artwork, or performance that embodies symbolic representation of deeper truths

"The story is an allegory about hope."

"An allegory is a narrative where characters and events represent abstract ideas or moral qualities"

a form of humor in which the words that someone says mean the opposite, producing an emphatic effect

"The irony made everyone laugh."

"Situational irony involves an unexpected"

the quality or character of speech, writing, or behavior that reflects the speaker's or writer's attitude

"His tone was angry."

"The author's sarcastic tone made the humorous story even more enjoyable for readers."

a recognized collection of authoritative books, texts, or works within a particular field or tradition, especially in religion

"This is the canon."

"The collected works of Shakespeare form a significant part of the English literary canon."

the events that have happened to a character before their story in a book, movie, etc. begins

"The backstory mattered."

"The film's villain had a tragic backstory that explained why he became so evil and bitter."

a written document, book, or musical composition created by hand rather than being produced using a typewriter or printing press

"Old handwritten manuscript."

"The library has a valuable old manuscript written by hand many centuries ago."

a roll of parchment, paper, or other material containing writing or images, often used for historical or religious texts

"Ancient scroll found."

"Archaeologists found an ancient scroll inside a cave in the desert last year."

an absurd or comically exaggerated replication of a literary or dramatic work

"A burlesque of Hamlet."

"The burlesque show was full of humor"

a specific graphical representation or shape of a character or symbol within a writing system

"Ancient glyph carved."

"The stone had mysterious ancient glyphs carved into its surface many years ago."

(linguistics) the way in which words and phrases are arranged to form grammatical sentences in a language

"Syntax is the study of sentence structure."

"The syntax of this sentence is so complex that even native speakers find it confusing."

collective knowledge, traditions, beliefs, and stories passed down within a culture or community, typically through storytelling

"Local lore says."

"According to local lore"

the customs, traditions, rituals, and behaviors that are inherited and preserved within a community or society over time

"Their heritage is rich."

"The festival celebrates the vibrant cultural heritage passed down through generations of the community."

a renewed period of growth, popularity, or significance, particularly in cultural, artistic, or economic contexts

"A cultural rebirth."

"The city experienced a remarkable rebirth, transforming abandoned industrial areas into thriving cultural hubs."