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Praxis Middle School Language Arts

Subjects : praxis, english
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. A phrase that consists of two contradictory terms






2. An author's choice of words based on their clearness - conciseness - effectiveness - and authenticity.






3. The analysis of how sounds function in a language or dialect.






4. A variety of a language used by people from a particular geographic area.






5. A metrical ______ is defined as one stressed syllable and a number of unstressed syllables (from zero to as many as four). Stressed syllables are indicated by the ? symbol. Unstressed syllables are indicated by the ? symbol. There are four possible t






6. Unrhymed verse - often occurring in iambic pentameter.






7. During the mid -19th century in New England - several writers and intellectuals worked together to write - translate works - and publish. Their philosophy focused on protesting the Puritan ethic and materialism. They valued individualism - freedom -






8. The study of the orgin of words






9. The flaw that leads to the downfall of a tragic hero; this term comes from the Greek word hybris - which means 'excessive pride.'






10. A narrative about human actions that is perceived by both the teller and the listeners to have taken place within human history and that possesses certain qualities that give the tale the appearance of truth or reality. Washington Irvin's The Legend






11. Language that shows disrespect for others or something sacred.






12. Meter that is composed of feet that are short - short - long or unaccented - unaccented - accented - usually used in light or whimsical poetry - such as limerick.






13. The story is told from the point of view of one character.






14. A rhythmical pattern in verse that is made up of stressed and unstressed syllables.






15. The use of words to create pictures in the reader's mind.






16. The narrator records the actions from his or her point of view - unaware of any of the other characters' thoughts or feelings. Also known as the objective view.






17. The regular or random occurrence of sound in poetry.






18. U '






19. The feeling a text evokes in the reader - such as sadness - tranquility - or elation.






20. A novel set in the western U.S. featuring the experiences of cowboys and frontiersmen. Examples include Zane Grey's Riders of the Purple Sage and Trail Driver - Larry McMurty's Lonesome Dove - Conrad Richter's The Sea of Grass - Fran Striker's The Lo






21. A person's account of his or hew own life.






22. A type of Japanese poem that is written in 17 syllables with three lines of five - seven - and five syllables - respectively. Expresses a single thought.






23. A group of words containing a subject and a predicate and forming part of a compound or complex sentence.






24. How the author uses words - phrases - and sentences to form ideas.






25. A word which describes or gives more information about a noun or pronoun. Ex. The lazy dog sat on the rug - the word lazy is an ____ which gives more information about the noun dog.






26. A literacy device in which the author jumps back in time in the chronology of narrative.






27. Fiction that is intended to frighten - unsettle - or scare the reader. Often overlaps with fantasy and science fiction. Examples include Stephen King's The Shining - Mary Shelley's Frankenstein - and Ray Bradbury's Something Wicked This Way Comes.






28. A fourteen - line poem - usually written in iambic pentameter - with a varied rhyme scheme. Two main types are Petrarchan (or Italian) and the Shakespearean (or English). A Petrarchan opens with an octave that states a proposition and ends with a ses






29. A figure of speech in which exaggeration is used for emphasis or effect - as in I could sleep for a year or this book weighs a ton.






30. The outcome or resolution of plot in a story.






31. A lesson a work of literature is teaching.






32. The reader sees a character's errors - but the character does not






33. The repetition of a line or phrase of a poem at regular intervals - particularly at the end of each stanza.






34. Narrative fiction that involves gods and heroes or has a theme that expresses a culture's ideology. Examples of Greek ______ include Zeus and the Olympians and The Trojan War. Roman ______ include Hercules - Apollo - and Venus.






35. The main character or hero of a written work.






36. A word which names a person - place or thing. Ex. boy - river - friend - Mexico - triangle - day - school - truth - university - idea - John F. Kennedy - movie






37. The perspective from which a story is told.






38. Rhyming of the ends of lines of verse.






39. Rhyme that occurs within a line of verse.






40. Specialized language used in a particular field or content area






41. A story about a person's life written by another person.






42. The purpose of a particular action differs greatly from the result






43. Two or more words in sequence that form a syntactic unit that is less than a complete sentence.






44. A person - place - thing - or event used to represent something else - such as the white flag that represents surrender.






45. Occurs when there are two or more possible meanings to a word or phrase.






46. An extended fictional prose narrative.






47. A person or being in a narrative






48. A word which can be used instead of a noun. Ex instead of saying John is a student - the ____ he can be used in place of the noun John and the sentence becomes He is a student.






49. A poem that is a mournful lament for the dead. Examples include William Shakespeare's 'Eligy' from Cymbeline - Robert Louis Stevenson's 'Requiem -' and Alfred Lord Tennysone's 'In Memoriam.'






50. A turn from the general audience to address a specific group of persons (or a personified abstraction) who is present of absent. For example - in a recent performance of Shakespeare's Hamlet - Hamlet turned to the audience and spoke directly to one w