Unit 2: Vocabulary of the Standards Adventures in Literature

Unit 2: Vocabulary of the Standards

Adventures in Literature

Definition Characteristics

Examples Non-examples

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theme

A life lesson or main message learned from a story.

A “big idea.” Positive.

Crime does not pay.

Hard work pays off.

“The beach” or “school.”



tone

The writers attitude toward his or her audience and subject.

The author wants to create a mood.

Serious, humorous, bitter, joyful, creepy..

Sounds, colors.



pronoun

A pronoun takes the place of a noun.

Personal, possessive, intensive or indefinite.

I, her, they (personal)

Mine, hers, theirs, ours

(possessive)

Jake went to the store. Jake bought Jake’s favorite food.



antecedent

The word that the pronoun replaces or represents.

Jake is unhappy; he failed the test. The antecedent for “he” is Jake.

Jake is unhappy he failed the test. “Test” is NOT the antecedent for “he.”

The pronoun must agree with its antecedent in number, gender, and case.



intensive pronoun

Pronouns that end in -self or –selves.

These pronouns are not essential to the basic meaning of a sentence.

Myself, himself, herself, ourselves, themselves. “He himself did the assignment.”

Hisself, theirselves. These are NOT words.



indefinite pronoun

An indefinite pronoun does not refer to any specific person, thing or amount.

It is vague and "not definite”

Everyone, somebody, most, all, several, each.

He, she, it, they, themselves, ours, mine.



point of viewFirst person: I, me, us – the narrator tells the story.Third person: he, she, it.

The way an author chooses to tell a story.

The author allows you to "see" and "hear" what is going on in a specific way.

.

A view from a mountaintop.



alliteration

Repetition of consonant sounds in nearby words.

Found in tongue-twisters.

Peter Piper picked a peck of peppers.

Peter Smith picked some blueberries.



onomatopoeia

Words that resemble sounds.

Adds sensory details to writing – sounds good to your ear.

Buzz, slam,hiccup, bang,splash.

Loud, soft.



hyperbole

An exaggeration. Ridiculous or impossible.

He made tons of money mowing lawns.

He made a lot of money mowing lawns.



personification

When an author gives animals or objects human qualities.

Something non-human does something only a person can do.

The tree groaned and the lake whispered.

The waves on the lake sounded like whispers.



literal

The factual or ordinary meaning of a word or phrase.

Words and phrases are true to the dictionary meaning.

“You hit the nail on thehead.” There is a REAL hammer.

“You hit the nail on the head.” This means you are absolutely correct.



figurative

An abstract meaning – thinking beyond the words.

Idioms or figures of speech are commonly used.

“You hit the nail on the head!” means you are absolutely correct.

“You hit the nail on the head!” means you have a hammer in your hand.



dialogue

When characters speak in text.

Spoken words are surrounded by quotation marks.

He said, “Watch out for the stop sign!”

He said to watch out for the stop sign.



sensory details

When an author uses the five senses to add detail and interest to his or her writing.

Words convey sights, sounds, smells, tastes and textures.

The sand felt warm as I squeezed it between my toes.

I walked along the sand on the beach.

Documents

Unit 2: Vocabulary of the Standards Adventures in Literature