AP English Literature and Composition
UPDATED ACTUAL Questions and
CORRECT Answers
adage - CORRECT ANSWER - A saying that becomes widely accepted as truth over time.
Usually observances of life and behaviour that express a general truth. Ex: "A penny saved is a
penny earned."
allegory - CORRECT ANSWER - A story in which the narrative or characters carry an
underlying symbolic, metaphorical or possibly ethical meaning.
alliteration - CORRECT ANSWER - The repetition of one or more initial consonant in a
group of words or lines of poetry or prose. Writers use this for ornament or for emphasis.
allusion - CORRECT ANSWER - A reference to a person, place, or event meant to create
an effect or enhance the meaning of an idea.
ambiguity - CORRECT ANSWER - A vagueness of meaning; a conscious lack of clarity
meant to evoke multiple meanings and interpretation.
anachronism - CORRECT ANSWER - A person, scene, event, or other element in
literature that fails to correspond with the time/era in which the work is set.
analogy - CORRECT ANSWER - A comparison in which an idea or a thing is compared
to something else that is quite different from it. It aims at explaining that idea or thing by
comparing it to something that is familiar.
antagonist - CORRECT ANSWER - A character or force in a work of literature that, by
opposing the protagonist produces tension or conflict.
,antithesis - CORRECT ANSWER - A rhetorical device in which two opposite ideas are
put together in a sentence to achieve a contrasting effect.
aphorism - CORRECT ANSWER - A statement of truth or opinion expressed in a concise
and witty manner. The term is often applied to philosophical, moral and literary principles.
Apollonian - CORRECT ANSWER - In contrast to Dionysian, it refers to the most noble,
godlike qualities of human nature and behaviour.
apostrophe - CORRECT ANSWER - A figure of speech where the writer or speaker
detaches himself from his present reality and addresses an imaginary character in his speech.
archetype - CORRECT ANSWER - A character, action or situation which represents or
reflects a commonly held or universal pattern, such as human nature.
assonance - CORRECT ANSWER - The repetition of two or more vowel sounds in a
group of words or lines in poetry and prose.
ballad - CORRECT ANSWER - A simple narrative verse that tells a story that is sung or
recited; a long narrative poem, usually in very regular meter and rhyme, typically has a folksy
quality
bard - CORRECT ANSWER - A poet or a performer in olden times who told heroic
stories to musical accompaniment.
Bildungsroman - CORRECT ANSWER - A special kind of novel that focuses on the
psychological and moral growth of its main character from his or her youth to adulthood.
Generally, such a novel starts with a loss or a tragedy that disturbs the main character
emotionally. He or she leaves on a journey to fill that vacuum.
, blank verse - CORRECT ANSWER - Poetry written in iambic pentameter, the primary
meter used in English poetry and the works of Shakespeare and Milton; its lines generally do not
rhyme.
bombast - CORRECT ANSWER - Inflated, pretentious language used for trivial subjects.
cacophony - CORRECT ANSWER - The use of words with sharp, harsh, hissing and
unmelodious sounds, primarily those of consonants, to achieve the desired results. Ex: "I detest
war because cause of war is always trivial."
caesura - CORRECT ANSWER - It involves creating a fracture within a sentence, where
the two separate parts are distinguishable from one another yet intrinsically linked; the purpose is
to create a dramatic pause. Ex: "Mozart- oh, how your music makes me soar!"
canon - CORRECT ANSWER - The works most widely read, studied, and considered
most important in national literature or in a specific literary period.
caricature - CORRECT ANSWER - A grotesque likeness of striking qualities in persons
and things; a portrait that exaggerates a facet of personality.
catharsis - CORRECT ANSWER - A cleansing of the spirit brought about by the pity and
terror of a dramatic tragedy.
classicism - CORRECT ANSWER - Deriving from the orderly qualities of ancient Greek
and Roman culture; implies formality, objectivity, simplicity and restraint.
conceit - CORRECT ANSWER - A figure of speech in which two vastly different objects
are likened together with the help of similes or metaphors; it develops a comparison which is
exceedingly unlikely but is, nonetheless, intellectually imaginative.
anticlimax - CORRECT ANSWER - This occurs when an action produces far smaller
results than one had been led to expect; it is frequently comic in effect.
UPDATED ACTUAL Questions and
CORRECT Answers
adage - CORRECT ANSWER - A saying that becomes widely accepted as truth over time.
Usually observances of life and behaviour that express a general truth. Ex: "A penny saved is a
penny earned."
allegory - CORRECT ANSWER - A story in which the narrative or characters carry an
underlying symbolic, metaphorical or possibly ethical meaning.
alliteration - CORRECT ANSWER - The repetition of one or more initial consonant in a
group of words or lines of poetry or prose. Writers use this for ornament or for emphasis.
allusion - CORRECT ANSWER - A reference to a person, place, or event meant to create
an effect or enhance the meaning of an idea.
ambiguity - CORRECT ANSWER - A vagueness of meaning; a conscious lack of clarity
meant to evoke multiple meanings and interpretation.
anachronism - CORRECT ANSWER - A person, scene, event, or other element in
literature that fails to correspond with the time/era in which the work is set.
analogy - CORRECT ANSWER - A comparison in which an idea or a thing is compared
to something else that is quite different from it. It aims at explaining that idea or thing by
comparing it to something that is familiar.
antagonist - CORRECT ANSWER - A character or force in a work of literature that, by
opposing the protagonist produces tension or conflict.
,antithesis - CORRECT ANSWER - A rhetorical device in which two opposite ideas are
put together in a sentence to achieve a contrasting effect.
aphorism - CORRECT ANSWER - A statement of truth or opinion expressed in a concise
and witty manner. The term is often applied to philosophical, moral and literary principles.
Apollonian - CORRECT ANSWER - In contrast to Dionysian, it refers to the most noble,
godlike qualities of human nature and behaviour.
apostrophe - CORRECT ANSWER - A figure of speech where the writer or speaker
detaches himself from his present reality and addresses an imaginary character in his speech.
archetype - CORRECT ANSWER - A character, action or situation which represents or
reflects a commonly held or universal pattern, such as human nature.
assonance - CORRECT ANSWER - The repetition of two or more vowel sounds in a
group of words or lines in poetry and prose.
ballad - CORRECT ANSWER - A simple narrative verse that tells a story that is sung or
recited; a long narrative poem, usually in very regular meter and rhyme, typically has a folksy
quality
bard - CORRECT ANSWER - A poet or a performer in olden times who told heroic
stories to musical accompaniment.
Bildungsroman - CORRECT ANSWER - A special kind of novel that focuses on the
psychological and moral growth of its main character from his or her youth to adulthood.
Generally, such a novel starts with a loss or a tragedy that disturbs the main character
emotionally. He or she leaves on a journey to fill that vacuum.
, blank verse - CORRECT ANSWER - Poetry written in iambic pentameter, the primary
meter used in English poetry and the works of Shakespeare and Milton; its lines generally do not
rhyme.
bombast - CORRECT ANSWER - Inflated, pretentious language used for trivial subjects.
cacophony - CORRECT ANSWER - The use of words with sharp, harsh, hissing and
unmelodious sounds, primarily those of consonants, to achieve the desired results. Ex: "I detest
war because cause of war is always trivial."
caesura - CORRECT ANSWER - It involves creating a fracture within a sentence, where
the two separate parts are distinguishable from one another yet intrinsically linked; the purpose is
to create a dramatic pause. Ex: "Mozart- oh, how your music makes me soar!"
canon - CORRECT ANSWER - The works most widely read, studied, and considered
most important in national literature or in a specific literary period.
caricature - CORRECT ANSWER - A grotesque likeness of striking qualities in persons
and things; a portrait that exaggerates a facet of personality.
catharsis - CORRECT ANSWER - A cleansing of the spirit brought about by the pity and
terror of a dramatic tragedy.
classicism - CORRECT ANSWER - Deriving from the orderly qualities of ancient Greek
and Roman culture; implies formality, objectivity, simplicity and restraint.
conceit - CORRECT ANSWER - A figure of speech in which two vastly different objects
are likened together with the help of similes or metaphors; it develops a comparison which is
exceedingly unlikely but is, nonetheless, intellectually imaginative.
anticlimax - CORRECT ANSWER - This occurs when an action produces far smaller
results than one had been led to expect; it is frequently comic in effect.
