AP Intermediate English (BIEAP) key terms

A conclusion a reader draws from clues in a passage rather than from a statement made outright. It requires combining evidence with background knowledge, and it must be supportable by the text.

The central point a paragraph or passage is built to convey. Every other sentence supports, illustrates, or qualifies it. It is often stated in a topic sentence but may be implied.

The attitude a writer conveys toward the subject or reader, such as ironic, nostalgic, indignant, or detached. Tone is created through word choice, sentence length, and imagery rather than stated directly.

Descriptive language that appeals to the senses, especially sight and sound, to create a picture or feeling in the reader's mind. In poetry it often works together with metaphor and rhythm.

A figure of speech that describes one thing as if it were another, without using 'like' or 'as', in order to highlight a shared quality. An extended metaphor continues the comparison across several lines.

A comparison between two unlike things introduced by 'like' or 'as', used to make a description vivid or surprising. It differs from a metaphor only in that the comparison is signalled explicitly.

Giving human qualities or actions to a non-human thing, as when a wind whispers or a road runs. It is common in poetry and in descriptive prose to create atmosphere or emotional force.

A sentence construction in which the subject performs the action, as in 'The committee approved the plan'. It is generally clearer and more direct than the passive and is preferred in most writing.

A construction in which the subject receives the action, formed with a form of 'be' plus the past participle, as in 'The plan was approved'. It is used when the doer is unknown, unimportant, or best left unstated.

The indirect rendering of someone's words, without quotation marks, usually requiring a shift in tense, pronouns, and time or place words, as in 'She said she would come the next day'.

A speaker's exact words enclosed in quotation marks and introduced by a reporting clause, as in 'He said, "I am tired."' The tense inside the quotation is not shifted.

The backshift of a verb to a past form when direct speech becomes reported speech, for example 'am going' becoming 'was going'. It does not occur when the reporting verb is in the present tense.

The rule that a verb must match its subject in number and person, as in 'The list of names is long'. Difficulties arise with collective nouns, indefinite pronouns, and phrases between subject and verb.

A group of words containing a subject and a finite verb. An independent clause can stand alone as a sentence; a dependent clause cannot and functions as a noun, adjective, or adverb within a sentence.

A group of related words that does not contain both a subject and a finite verb, such as 'in the morning' or 'having finished the work'. A phrase functions as a single unit in a sentence.

A word with a meaning close to that of another word, as 'begin' and 'commence'. True synonyms are rare because words usually differ in register, connotation, or collocation, so context decides which fits.

A word with a meaning opposite to another word, as 'generous' and 'mean'. Antonyms may be gradable, like hot and cold, or absolute, like alive and dead, which affects how they are used.

The emotional or cultural association a word carries beyond its literal meaning, as 'childlike' suggests innocence while 'childish' suggests immaturity. Choosing between near-synonyms depends on their connotations.

The literal, dictionary meaning of a word, stripped of emotional associations. It is usually contrasted with connotation, which adds attitude or feeling to that core meaning.

A fixed expression whose meaning cannot be worked out from the individual words, such as 'to let the cat out of the bag'. Idioms must be learned as whole units and are often informal.

A verb combined with an adverb or preposition to form a new meaning, as 'give up' or 'look into'. Some are separable, allowing the object between verb and particle, and some are not.

The habitual pairing of words that native users expect together, such as 'heavy rain' rather than 'strong rain'. Correct collocation is a mark of natural, accurate English usage.

A bound morpheme attached to the front of a word to change its meaning, as 'un-' in 'unfair' or 'pre-' in 'preview'. Most English prefixes alter meaning rather than word class.

A bound morpheme attached to the end of a word, often changing its word class, as '-ness' turning 'kind' into a noun or '-less' turning 'hope' into an adjective.

The base form of a word to which prefixes and suffixes may be added, carrying the core meaning. For example, 'act' is the root of 'reaction' and 'actively'.

The sentence, usually first in a paragraph, that announces the paragraph's controlling idea. The remaining sentences develop it with explanation, example, or evidence, giving the paragraph unity.

The quality of a piece of writing in which ideas are arranged in a logical order and clearly connected, so the reader can follow the argument without confusion. It works with cohesion, the linking of sentences.

The linking of sentences through devices such as pronouns, conjunctions, and repeated key words, so that a text holds together as a single unit rather than a list of unrelated statements.

A concise, faithful summary of a passage, usually about one third of its length, written in the summariser's own words and retaining the main ideas in their original order. It adds no comment or opinion.

A restatement of a passage's meaning in different words, keeping approximately the original length and detail. Unlike a précis, it does not condense, and unlike a quotation, it does not repeat the wording.

A single sentence in an essay that states the central claim the writer will defend. It usually appears at the end of the introduction and controls the structure of the body paragraphs.

Presenting another person's words or ideas as one's own without acknowledgement. It includes copying without quotation marks as well as close paraphrase of distinctive wording without citation.

A speech in a play delivered by a character alone on stage, revealing private thoughts to the audience rather than to other characters. It is a key device for characterisation in drama.

A situation in which the audience knows something a character does not, so that the character's words carry a meaning they cannot intend. It creates tension, suspense, or comic effect.

Unrhymed poetry written in iambic pentameter, with five stressed beats to a line. It is the dominant metre of English dramatic and narrative poetry and is close to the rhythms of speech.

The regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables that gives a line of poetry its rhythm. Common English metres include iambic, trochaic, and anapaestic patterns of varying lengths.

A short formal announcement displayed for a group, giving information such as a meeting, lost property, or a change of schedule. It is headed, dated, signed by an authority, and kept brief and factual.

The composition of a factual, structured account of an event or investigation, typically with a heading, introduction, findings, and conclusion. It uses formal, impersonal language and avoids opinion unless asked for.

A persuasive public text designed to promote a product, service, or event. It uses attention-catching headlines, persuasive adjectives, and a clear call to action, and is often brief and visually organised.