BCS Written English key terms

A concise summary of a passage that retains its essential ideas and proportions, typically written in one's own words and about one-third the original length.

To restate the meaning of a text in different words, often to clarify or integrate it into one's own writing without changing the original sense.

A sentence, usually at the start of a paragraph, that states the main idea and controls the paragraph's development.

The quality of a text that makes it easy to follow because its ideas are logically connected and flow smoothly from one to the next.

The use of linking devices such as pronouns, conjunctions, and repeated words to tie sentences and paragraphs together in a text.

A word or phrase (e.g., however, therefore, in addition) that signals the relationship between ideas and helps readers follow the argument.

A sentence that expresses the central claim of an essay, usually appearing near the end of the introduction and guiding the whole composition.

A short piece of writing on a particular subject that presents the writer's own argument or perspective, typically organized into introduction, body, and conclusion.

A distinct section of writing that develops one main idea, usually marked by an indentation or a line break and containing several related sentences.

The act of using someone else's words or ideas without proper acknowledgment and presenting them as one's own.

A reference to a source of information, giving credit to the original author and allowing readers to locate the source.

The grammatical rule that a verb must match its subject in number and person (e.g., 'She writes' vs. 'They write').

In grammar, the agreement between words in a sentence, especially between subject and verb or between pronoun and antecedent, in number, gender, or person.

The noun or noun phrase to which a pronoun refers, determining the pronoun's number and gender.

A noun that denotes a group of people or things (e.g., team, committee) and can take either a singular or plural verb depending on whether the group is viewed as a unit or as individuals.

A word or phrase that modifies a word not clearly stated in the sentence, often creating confusion or unintended meaning.

A modifier placed too far from the word it is intended to modify, causing ambiguity or a unintended meaning.

A modifier that could modify either the preceding or the following word, creating ambiguity about the intended meaning.

The use of similar grammatical forms for items in a list or comparison, which improves clarity and rhythm in writing.

The joining of two or more grammatically equal elements, such as words, phrases, or clauses, often with a coordinating conjunction.

The joining of clauses so that one is dependent on the other, typically introduced by a subordinating conjunction, to show a relationship such as cause, time, or condition.

An error in which two independent clauses are joined only by a comma without a coordinating conjunction or appropriate punctuation.

A sentence in which two or more independent clauses are joined without proper punctuation or conjunctions, making the sentence difficult to follow.

A punctuation mark (;) used to link closely related independent clauses or to separate items in a list that already contain commas.

A punctuation mark (') used to show possession or the omission of letters in contractions, and sometimes to form certain plurals.

The grammatical case that shows ownership or a close relationship, typically formed by adding an apostrophe and s to a noun.

A shortened form of a word or group of words in which an apostrophe replaces omitted letters (e.g., don't, it's).

An expression whose meaning cannot be understood from the literal meanings of its individual words (e.g., 'kick the bucket').

A group of words that functions as a single unit in a sentence but lacks a subject and verb combination.

The habitual pairing of words that naturally occur together in a language (e.g., 'make a decision', 'strong tea').

A word that has the same or nearly the same meaning as another word in the same language.

A word that expresses a meaning opposite to that of another word.

A reference book or resource that lists words grouped together according to similarity of meaning, useful for finding synonyms and antonyms.

The process of rendering text from one language into another while preserving meaning, tone, and style as closely as possible.

The representation of letters or words from one writing system in the characters of another, usually based on sound rather than meaning.

A translation that closely follows the words and structure of the source text, sometimes at the expense of naturalness in the target language.

The correct arrangement of letters to form a word according to established usage, which is essential for clear and accurate written communication.

A word that sounds the same as another word but has a different meaning and often a different spelling (e.g., 'to', 'too', 'two').

A word that is spelled the same as another word but has a different meaning and sometimes a different pronunciation (e.g., 'lead' as metal or to guide).