Language features - definition GCSE English

Similie

an image which compares two using like or as

metaphor

an image which compares two things without using like or as

personification

an image which gives human qualities to non-human things

Choice of words (vocabulary)

using more unusual or specialized or technical words

use of slang

most likely used in direct speech

use of direct or indirect speech

quoting or reporting spoken words

hyperbole

deliberate exaggeration (wyolbrzymienie)

use of multiple adjectives or adverbs

the adjectives give more information about the noun and the adverbs about the verbs

rhetorical question

a question that does not expect an answer from the reader or audience

use of first and second person pronoun

1st person singular = I, me, my, mine, Plural = we, us, our, ours 2nd person singular and plural = you, your, yours

symbolism

use of an object (concrete noun) to represent some emotion of belief system or other abstract noun

listing

objects/reasons/parts of a whole, etc. are listed - in text, usually with commas seperating them; in adverbs/web pages or text, can be bullet points

emotive language

choice of words which have specifically intended emotional effects or are intended to evoke (przyłowyłac) an emotional response in the reades

use of numbers/ statistic

ex. thousands died and hundreds of thousands are homeless

alliteration

repetition of the same consonant sound at the beginning of words - usually close in succession

onomatopoeia

words sound like the sounds they name

repetition

repeating the same or nearly the same words for effect

sibilance

repetition of s sounds

connotation

to a meaning that is implied by a word apart from the thing which it describes explicitly. Words carry cultural and emotional associations or meanings in addition to their literal meanings or denotations.

oxymoron

Oxymoron is a figure of speech in which two opposite ideas are joined to create an effect. The common oxymoron phrase is a combination of an adjective proceeded by a noun with contrasting meanings, e.g. “cruel kindness” or “living death”.

Pathetic fallacy

is a literary device that attributes human qualities and emotions to inanimate objects of nature. The word “pathetic” in the term is not used in the derogatory sense of being miserable; rather, here, it stands for “imparting emotions to something else”.

superlative

literary device which is usually an adjective or adverb used to distinguish an object from three or more others of its type.