Test your basic knowledge |

AP Literary Terms

Subjects : english, ap, literature
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. The depiction of people - things - and events as they really are without idealization or exaggeration for effect.






2. A sentence that departs from the usual word order of English sentences by expressing its main though only at the end. In other words - the particulars in the sentence are presented before the idea they support.






3. A word or phrase representing that which can be seen - touched - tasted - smelled - or felt






4. An imaginary story that has become an accepted part of the cultural or religious tradition of a group or society






5. One of the ancient Greek goddesses presiding over the arts. The imaginary source of inspiration for an artist or writer






6. A form of verse or prose that tells a story






7. The act of determining the meter of a poetic line.






8. A person - scene - event - or other element in literature that fails to correspond with the time or era in which the work is set






9. Also called figure of speech. In contrast to literal language - it implies meanings. Includes metaphors - similes - and personification - among others.






10. A form of literature in which the hero is destroyed by some character flaw and a set of forces that cause the hero considerable anguish






11. An extended narrative about improbable events and extraordinary people in exotic places






12. A mocking - satirical assault on a person or situation






13. Literally - 'seize the day'; enjoy life while you can - a common theme in literature






14. An adjective or phrase that expresses a striking quality of a person or thing - ex. sun-bright topaz - sun-lit lake - sun-bright lake






15. Pleasing - harmonious sounds






16. A term that describes a line of poetry that ends with a natural pause often indicated by a mark of punctuation.






17. A term often used as a synonym for realism - also a view of experience that is generally characterized as bleak and pessimistic.






18. A saying or proverb expressing common wisdom or truth






19. A concise but ingenious - witty - and thoughtful statement






20. A vagueness of meaning; a conscious lack of clarity meant to evoke multiple meanings and interpretation






21. The repetition of one or more initial consonants in a group of words or lines of poetry or prose






22. The use of words whose sounds suggest their meaning






23. Faulty reasoning that inappropriately ascribes human feelings to nature or nonhuman objects






24. The main idea or meaning - often an abstract idea upon which a work of literature is built






25. The main character in a work of literature






26. A term for the title character of a work of literature






27. A unit of stressed and unstressed syllables used to determine the meter of a poetic line.






28. Inflated - pretentious language used for trivial subjects






29. A lyric poem or passage that describes a kind of ideal life or place






30. A verse with five poetic feet per line






31. The use of one object to evoke ideas and associations not literally part of the original object






32. A term that describes characters' excessive emotional response to experience; also nauseatingly nostalgic and mawkish






33. A device employed in Anglo-Saxon poetry in which the name of a thing is replaced by one of its functions or qualities - as in 'ring-giver' for king and 'whale-road' for ocean






34. A structure that provides premise or setting for a narrative






35. Two rhymed lines written in iambic pentameter and used widely in eighteenth-century verse.






36. French for a novel in which hisotrical events and actual people appear under the guise of fiction






37. A sentence containing a deliberate omission of words. In the sentence 'May was hot and June the same -' the verb 'was' is omitted from the second clause






38. A tale in which a young protagonist experiences an introduction to adulthood. The character may develop understanding via disillusionment - education - doses of reality - or any other experiences that alter his or her emotional or intellectual maturi






39. Also called 'pen name' or 'nom de plume'; a false name or alias used by writers. Ex: Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)






40. The total environment for the action in a novel or play. It includes time - place - historical milieu - and social - political - and even spiritual circumstances






41. A work of fiction of roughly 20 -000 to 50 -000 words--longer than a short story - but shorter than a novel






42. The dictionary definition of a word






43. A figure of speech in which objects and animals are given human characteristics






44. The use of insincere or overdone sentimentality






45. The general form - pattern - and manner of expression of a work of literature






46. The pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables found in poetry






47. The work of poets - particularly those of the seventeenth century - that uses elaborate conceits - is highly intellectual - and expresses the complexities of love and life






48. A novel in which supernatural horrors and an atmosphere of unknown terrors pervades the action






49. A brief and often simplistic lesson that a reader may infer from a work of literature






50. A discrepancy between the true meaning of a situation and the literal meaning of the written or spoken words