AP Language and Composition Glossary of Rhetorical Devices

Which term fits the following definition? An expression that has a meaning that has little to do with the words that compose it (create it).

• Metaphor

• Personification

• Idiom

• Hyperbole

Tags

CCSS.L.3.5A

CCSS.RL.3.4

What is the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of two or more nearby words?

• consonance

• rhyme

• alliteration

• assonance

Tags

CCSS.RL.2.4

CCSS.RL.7.4

CCSS.L.4.5

CCSS.L.5.5

CCSS.L.6.5

Which term fits the following definition? A word that sounds like the thing it describes.

• Onomatopoeia

• Idiom

• Rhyme

• Alliteration

Tags

CCSS.RL.2.4

CCSS.RL.7.4

CCSS.L.4.5

CCSS.L.5.5

CCSS.L.6.5

repeated vowel sounds
They roam the lonesome roads and never go home.

• alliteration

• consonance

• assonance

• onomatopoeia

Tags

CCSS.RL.2.4

CCSS.RL.7.4

CCSS.L.4.5

CCSS.L.5.5

CCSS.L.6.5

"You hit the nail on the head." is an example of -

• personification

• hyperbole

• a metaphor

• an idiom

Tags

CCSS.L.4.5B

CCSS.L.5.5B

A reference to something outside of a literary work, like a Bible story or verse.

• imagery

• allusion

• mood

• theme

Tags

CCSS.L.7.5A

CCSS.RI.8.4

CCSS.RL.8.4

Which figurative device is being used in this line? The salmon we caught was bigger than the boat!

• Idiom

• Hyperbole

• Simile

• Alliteration

Tags

CCSS.L.11-12.5A

Stating one thing is another to create a comparison: “He’s a sly fox.”

• metaphor

• simile

• personification

• hyperbole

Tags

CCSS.L.3.5A

CCSS.RL.3.4

Which term fits the following definition? The use of the same sound at the start of several consecutive or nearly consecutive words.

• Alliteration

• Simile

• Hyperbole

• Rhyme

Tags

CCSS.RL.2.4

CCSS.RL.7.4

CCSS.L.4.5

CCSS.L.5.5

CCSS.L.6.5

When he heard the scream, claws of fear tore at his scalp.

• literal language

• figurative language

Tags

CCSS.L.3.5A

CCSS.RL.3.4