Transcript Slide 1

200 terms and definitions
for language arts
A group of scenes in
a play
an act
A small part added to
the beginning or end
of a word to change
its meaning.
an affix
Repetition of initial
consonant sounds:
“Peter Piper Picked a
peck of pickled
peppers.”
alliteration
A book containing
lists of facts,
published every
year.
an almanac
A comparison
between two pairs
of things:
apple : red :: banana : yellow
an analogy
Clearly stated;
easy to see
apparent
Transfer an idea
from your reading to
a new situation in
real life.
apply
Take something
for granted.
assume
A book of maps
an atlas
How the author
feels about his or
her topic.
attitude
The person who
wrote the
selection
an author
The story of a
person’s life;
written by that
person.
an autobiography
A summary of
events that
happened before
the story begins.
background
information
The start of a
selection
the beginning
A strong opinion
about a topic that
influences the way
a writer writes.
bias
The story of a
person’s life written
by another author
a biography
Words written in
dark, heavy type
that looks like this.
bold print
A list of all the
characters in a play,
found at the beginning
of the script.
cast of characters
Something that
makes something
else happen
a cause
A person or
animal who takes
part in a story
a character
Details that describe
what kind of person
a character is.
characteristics
Make the writing
clearer and easier
to understand.
clarify
The most important
event in the story;
the moment the
conflict is resolved.
the climax
A play with a happy
ending; usually
funny but it doesn’t
have to be!
a comedy
Tell how two
things are alike.
compare
A statement that tells
how two things are
alike or different
a comparison
A decision a reader
makes about what is
happening in the story,
based on evidence.
a conclusion
The problem
characters in a story
are trying to solve.
a conflict
Explain how ideas in a
selection are similar to
other texts and the
real world.
connect
Words around an
unknown word that
help you figure out
its meaning.
context clues
Tell how two
things are
different.
contrast
A moveable piece of
cloth separating the
audience from the
stage in a drama
a curtain
Writing that gives
details about a person,
place, thing, or action.
descriptive
writing
A variety of English
spoken by a certain
group of people:
“You ain’t gone?”
a dialect
Words characters say
to one another in
piece of writing.
dialogue
A book of words
and their
definitions
a dictionary
Twist the facts out
of their true
meaning.
distort
A piece of writing
intended to be
performed by
actors.
drama
Changed a story
into a drama
dramatized
The result of a
cause
an effect
Point something out
as being important.
emphasize
Feelings that make
you act in a certain
way.
emotional factors
A book or set of books
containing facts and
explanations of a wide
variety of subjects
encyclopedia
Judge the quality of
something good;
decide how good or
bad something is.
evaluate
A piece of writing
that tells how good
or bad something is.
an evaluation
Something that
happens in a story
an event
Stretching the truth;
making something
greater than it really
is.
exaggeration
Things that have
happened in a
person’s life
experiences
A description of an
event by a person
who was there
eyewitness account
A statement that
can be proved to
be true
a fact
Reasoning that has
mistakes: the facts do
not support the
conclusion.
faulty logic
A story made up by
an author.
fiction
Words that don’t mean
exactly what they say,
such as similes and
metaphors.
figurative language
The story is told by a
character inside the
story.
first person
A scene in a story that
brings the reader back
to an event that
happened before.
flashback
Hints the author
gives about what will
happen next.
foreshadowing
A broad statement
that could apply to
more than one
situation
a generalization
A category of
writing
genre
A section in a book
that gives the meaning
of words used in that
book
a glossary
A combination of
words and pictures
that show how a
selection is organized
graphic organizers
The title of one
section of a selection
a heading
Exaggeration: “Your
dog is so ugly it
could…”
hyperbole
A picture, diagram,
drawing, figure, graph,
or table that adds
information to the
selection.
an illustration
A picture that a
selection makes in
your mind
an image
Make an educated
guess about what is
happening in the
story.
infer
An educated guess
you make about
what is happening in
the story.
an inference
Understand and
explain the meaning
of something.
interpret
Writing at the
beginning of a
selection that tells
you what will come.
introduction
When a character
says one thing and
means another.
verbal irony
When events do not
work out as planned
situational irony
When the reader
knows something
the characters do
not.
dramatic irony
Writing that slants
to the side like this
italic
A group of words
next to one another
in a poem
a line
A publication printed
regularly that focuses
on one particular
topic.
a magazine
What the author says
about the topic; the
most important message
of the selection.
main idea
The conflict of the
story
main problem
Blank space around
the edges of the
page
margin
The story of a
person’s life, written
by that person (Also
called autobiography)
memoir
A comparison
between two things
that does not use
“like” or “as”
metaphor
A long speech by one
character in a drama
monologue
The feeling of the
selection; the way
the author wants the
reader to feel.
mood
A word that can have
more than one meaning,
such as orange
multiple-meaning
word
A story told in
prose.
a narrative
The person telling
the story
narrator
Bad (used to
describe feelings)
negative
Not having any
emotions about a
topic, not negative or
positive.
neutral
A publication usually
printed every day
that contains current
news updates.
newspaper
Writing that is true,
telling about real-life
people, places,
things, or ideas.
nonfiction
A statement about the
way a person feels
about something; it
cannot be proven to be
true for everybody.
an opinion
Re-stating an idea
in your own words
paraphrase
A comparison between
a non-human and a
human, giving a
non-human human
qualities.
personification
A group of words,
not a complete
sentence
phrase
A piece written that
is intended to be
performed by actors,
also called a drama.
play
The author of a
drama
a playwright
What happens in
the story.
plot
The author of a
poem
a poet
A piece of writing that
uses sounds and
figurative language to
express an imaginative
thought.
poetry
Who’s telling the story
(in fiction) OR The
author’s perspective
on his/her topic (in
nonfiction)
point of view
Good (used to
describe feelings)
positive
Guess what will
happen next.
predict
A guess about
what will happen
next.
a prediction
A group of letters
added to the beginning
of a word that change
the word’s meaning.
a prefix
A piece of writing
written by someone
who was involved in
the event he/she
describes.
primary source
Something that
causes difficulty for
one or more
characters
a problem
An object an actor
uses or carries on
stage.
a prop
Writing that tries to
persuade the reader to
act based on emotions
and not on facts
propaganda
Writing in sentences
and paragraphs (not
drama or poetry)
prose
The reason why a
person does
something
purpose
Punctuation marks
that surround
dialogue; they look
like this: “ “
quotation marks
Emphasizing a sound,
word, or idea by u
sing it over and over
again
repetition
The way the conflict
in the story is
solved.
resolution
Something or
someone that can
give you needed
information.
a resource
Repetition of the
ending sounds of
words: hat/cat/mat
or take/break/shake.
rhyme
The “beat” in a poem,
a pattern of stressed
and unstressed
syllables
rhythm
A small part of a
word that gives it a
basic meaning
root
A section of a play
taking place in a
single setting
scene
A drama written
for TV or movies
a screenplay
The written copy of a
drama, containing
dialogue and stage
directions
a script
A piece of writing
written by someone
who was not involved in
the event he/she
describes.
secondary source
Language that appeals
to any of the five
senses: touch, taste,
sound, smell, or sight.
sensory words
Anything that is
constructed or painted
to make the stage look
like the setting of the
play
a set
When and where a
story takes place
setting
A shorter story next to
the main selection that
gives more detail about
a topic related to the
main selection
a sidebar
Important
significant
A comparison
between two things
that uses the words
“like” or “as”
simile
A short, informal
drama
a skit
The way a problem
could be solved.
solution
The narrator of a
poem
speaker
The area where a
play is performed
stage
Instructions to the
actors about how to
move and say their
lines
stage directions
The author’s position
on a topic: how
he/she feels about it.
stance
A group of lines in
a poem
a stanza
Said or written
stated
A graphic organizer
that shows the parts
of a story (character, plot,
setting, sequence,
resolution, etc.)
story map
A plan for how to
complete a task
a strategy
A smaller heading
that gives the title of
one section of a
selection
subheading
Words underneath
the title of a
selection that give
more information
subtitle
A group of letters
added to the end of
a word that change
the word’s meaning.
a suffix
Re-tell the story by
listing the most
important events: to
“make a long story
short.”
summarize
A brief re-telling of
the most important
events in a story
a summary
A fact or idea that
helps to prove that
the main idea is
correct
supporting detail
Something that
stands for
something else
a symbol
The building in which
a play is performed.
a theater
The moral or lesson
about life that a story
teaches
theme
A book of words
and their synonyms
a thesaurus
A narrator, who is not
a character in the
story, tells the story.
third person
The name of a
selection
a title
The way the author
feels about his or her
topic.
tone
What the selection
is about.
topic
A drama with a sad
ending
a tragedy
The appearance of
words, lines, or stanzas
in the poem that add to
the poem’s meaning
visual elements
The decisions a
writer makes about
what words to use.
word choice
Overused or
commonplace
trite
Vague or unclear
ambiguous
Unnecessary
repetition of a word
or idea
redundant
Worried, anxious
distraught
Present reasons for
or against something
argue
Gloomy, sad,
serious
somber
Wild excitement
pandemonium
Overused
expression
cliché
Extreme confusion
bedlam
Showing remarkable
originality
ingenious
Suffering severely
from hunger;
starving.
famished
Words imitating
sounds
onomatopoeia
To condemn openly,
criticize.
denounce
To plunge into a
liquid,
submerge.
douse
To give up,
desert,
disown
forsake
Back up with
details or evidence.
support
To illustrate and
explain
demonstrate
To give more
details
elaborate
To cause somebody to
adopt a certain
position, belief, or
course of action
persuade
Not clearly seen,
heard, or
understood.
indistinct
Extremely sorrowful
or emotionally
painful
grievous
Feeling of guilt
remorse
The reason a
character behaves a
certain way.
motivation
The art of
evaluating or
analyzing the play
critique
Uncertainly
tentatively
The items needed
to make the food.
ingredients
One follows this to
make a cake, cookies,
or any other food.
recipe
A cup, teaspoon,
tablespoon, pinch,
dash, or an ounce
measurements
Turn on the oven early
to get it to a specific
temperature before
putting the food in to
cook or bake.
preheat
The character who
opposes the main
character
antagonist
The main or
central character
in a literary work
protagonist
A story from the past,
often about a famous
person or event, based
at least somewhat on
historical fact
a legend
A story that attempts
to explain something
about the world
a myth
A brief tale, usually
about an animal, that
teaches a moral or
lesson.
a fable
A story passed down
from one generation
to the next.
a folktale
The person or
persons for whom
you are writing
audience
To look quickly
through a reading for
specific information
scan
To look quickly at a
reading for a general
idea of what it is
about.
skim
A main idea that is
not directly stated;
but discovered by
inference.
implied
A reading strategy to
help with
comprehension by
going back and reading
the selection again
re-reading
An alphabetical list in a
printed work that gives
each item listed the
page number where it
may be found.
index
To foresee and deal
with or provide for
beforehand
anticipate
A wrong or
mistaken idea
misconception
To think seriously and
carefully about what
occurred.
reflect
A device used in a
household, especially
in the kitchen.
utensil
So clear in statement
that there is no doubt
about the meaning
explicit
A newspaper or
magazine article that
gives the opinions of
its editors
editorial
A changing from one
state, stage, place, or
subject to another
a transition