Literary Terms Flashcards 2025

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Allegory

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A narrative either in verse or prose, in which characters, action, and sometimes setting represent abstract concepts apart from the literal meaning of the story. (ex. Everyman)

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Alliteration

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The repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of words.

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Allusion

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A brief reference to a person, event, or place in history, or to a work of art/literature.

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Analogy

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A comparison made between two items, situations, or ideas that are somewhat alike but unlike in most respects.

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Anaphora

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Figure of repetition that occurs when the first word or set of words in one sentence, clause, or phrase is/are repeated at or very near the beginning of successive sentences, clauses, or phrases.

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Antagonist

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A character in a story or play who opposes the chief character or protagonist.

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Apostrophe

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A figure of speech in which a speaker directly addresses an absent person or a personified quality, object, or idea.

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Archetype

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A character, an action, or situation that seems to represent common patterns of human life. Often include a symbol, a theme, a setting, or a character that have a common meaning in an entire culture, or even the entire human race.

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Aside

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In drama, a few words or a short passage spoken by one character to the audience while the other actors on stage pretend their characters cannot hear the speaker’s words.

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Assonance

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The repetition of similar vowel sounds followed by different consonant sounds in stressed syllables or words.