English Comp Test

• Ambiguity

  When a word, phrase, or statement has more than one meaning or interpretation. Example: "The bark was painful" could refer to the sound of a dog barking or the rough exterior of a tree.
• Analogy

  A comparison between two things, typically for the purpose of explanation or clarification. Example: "Life is like a box of chocolates; you never know what you're gonna get."
• Anaphora


  The repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses or sentences. Example: "We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets..."
• Anastrophe


  The inversion of the usual order of words for emphasis or poetic effect. Example: "Patience I lack" instead of "I lack patience."
• Antithesis


  The contrast or opposition between two things. Example: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..."
• Apostrophe

  When a speaker addresses someone or something that isn't present or alive. Example: "O Death, where is thy sting?"
• Catalogue


  A list of items or people, often used for poetic or rhetorical effect. Example: "She packed her bags: shoes, dresses, hats, scarves..."
• Chiasmus


  A reversal in the order of words in two otherwise parallel phrases. Example: "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country."
• Conceit


  An extended metaphor comparing two very dissimilar things. Example: "Love is a battlefield."
• Epithet


  A descriptive word or phrase expressing a quality or attribute of the person or thing mentioned. Example: "Richard the Lionheart."
• Hyperbole


  Exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally. Example: "I'm so hungry I could eat a horse."
• Irony


  When the opposite of what is expected happens or is said, often for humorous or emphatic effect. Example: "The fire station burned down."
• Kenning


  A metaphorical phrase used in Old English poetry to replace a single, usually compound, noun. Example: "Whale-road" for sea.
• Metaphor


  A figure of speech that directly refers to one thing by mentioning another for rhetorical effect. Example: "Time is a thief."
• Metonymy


  The substitution of the name of an attribute or adjunct for that of the thing meant. Example: "The White House issued a statement."
• Oxymoron


  A figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction. Example: "Deafening silence."
• Paradox


  A seemingly contradictory statement that may nonetheless be true. Example: "Less is more."
• Parallelism


  The use of successive verbal constructions in poetry or prose that correspond in grammatical structure, sound, meaning, etc. Example: "Easy come, easy go."
• Periphrasis (circumlocution)


  The use of indirect and circumlocutory speech or writing. Example: "The little one, sleeping peacefully" for "the baby."
• Prosopopoeia (personification)


  Attributing human characteristics to something non-human. Example: "The wind whispered through the trees."
• Rhetorical Question


  A question asked for effect or to make a statement rather than to elicit information. Example: "Can birds fly?"
• Simile


  A figure of speech involving the comparison of one thing with another thing of a different kind, often using "like" or "as." Example: "As brave as a lion."
• Symbol


  Something that represents or stands for something else, often an abstract concept. Example: The dove symbolizes peace.
• Synaesthesia


  Describing one kind of sensation in terms of another. Example: "Loud colors" or "sweet sound."
• Synecdoche


  A figure of speech in which a part is made to represent the whole or vice versa. Example: "All hands on deck."
• Trope


  A figurative or metaphorical use of a word or expression. Example: "The pen is mightier than the sword."
• Understatement


  The presentation of something as being smaller, worse, or less important than it actually is. Example: "I'm just a bit tired" after running a marathon.