Test your basic knowledge |

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. Language that shows disrespect for others or something sacred.






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






3. The study of the sounds of language and their physical properties.






4. The multiple use of a word - phrase - or idea for emphasis or rhythmic effect.






5. Language widely considered crude - disgusting - and oftentimes offensive.






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






7. A person or being in a narrative






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






9. The time and place in which the action of a story takes place.






10. 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.






11. A suspenseful story that deals with a puzzling crime. Examples include Edgar Allan Poe's 'The Murder in Rue Morgue' and Charles Dickens' The Mystery of Edwin Drood.






12. 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.






13. 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.






14. The most specific or direct meaning of a word - in contrast to its figurative or associated meanings.






15. A metric line of poetry. Its name is based on the kind and number of feet composing it ('foot').






16. The narrator shares the thoughts and feelings of one (or a few) character(s).






17. Literature that makes fun of social conventions or conditions - usually to evoke change.






18. Deals with current or future development of technological advances. Examples are Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse - Five - George Orwell's 1984 - Aldous Huxley's Brave New World - and Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451.






19. The narrator shares the thoughts and feelings of all the characters.






20. A novel comprised of idealized events far removed from everyday life. This genre includes the subgenres of gothic ____ and medieval ____. Examples include Mary Shelly's Frankenstein - William Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida - and King Horn (anonym






21. Literature - often drama - ending in a catastrophic event for the protagonist(s) after he or she faces several problems or conflicts.






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






23. A contradictory statement that makes sense






24. A person or thing working against the hero of a literary work (the protagonist).






25. 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






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






27. A division of poetry named for the number of lines it contains...Couplet: Two - lines - Triplet: Three - lines - Quatrain: Four - lines - Quintet: Five - lines - Sestet: Six- lines - Septet: Seven - lines - Octave: Eight - lines.






28. The use of a word or phrase to mean the exact opposite of its literal or expected meaning. There are three types....Dramatic - Verbal - Situation.






29. A word which shows action or state of being. Ex. In the sentence The dog bit the man - bit is the ____.






30. A word that connects other words or groups of words. Ex. In the sentence Bob and Dan are friends - the _____ 'and' connects two nouns and in the sentence.






31. Unrhymed verse - often occurring in iambic pentameter.






32. The telling of a story.






33. A figure of speech in which a comparison is implied but not stated - such as 'This winter is a bear.'






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






35. The overall feeling created by an author's use of words.






36. A socially accepted word or phrase used to replace unacceptable language - such as expressions for bodily functions or body parts. Also used as substitutes for straightforward words to tactfully conceal or falsify meaning. Ex. My grandmother passed a






37. Distinctive features of a person's speech and speech patterns.






38. The study of the meaning in language.






39. A literary device in which animals - ideas - and things are represented as having human traits.






40. A person who opposes or competes with the main character (protagonist); often the villain in the story.






41. The structure of a work of literature; the sequence of events.






42. 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 -






43. A stanza made up of two rhyming lines.






44. Verse that contains an irregular metrical pattern and line length; also known as vers libre.






45. A brief fictional prose narrative. Examples include Shirley Jackson's 'The Lottery -' Washington Irving's 'Rip van Winkle' D.H. Lawrence's 'The Horse Dealer's Daughter -' Arthur Conan Doyle's 'Hound of the Baskervilles -' and Dorothy Parker's 'Big Bl






46. Rhyming of the ends of lines of verse.






47. 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






48. The specialized language of a particular group or culture. Ex. in the field of education...rubric - tuning protocol - and deskilling.






49. A method by which trained readers evaluate a piece of writing for its overall quality. There is no focus on one aspect of the writing.






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