Kerala Plus Two English (DHSE) flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Scanning vs skimming

Scanning hunts specific data such as names, dates or numerals; skimming reads quickly for gist and structure. Use scanning when a question names a detail, skimming before questions on main idea.

Inference in comprehension

A conclusion drawn from textual clues rather than stated directly. Correct inferences stay within what the passage implies and never add outside facts or absolute qualifiers.

Vocabulary in context

Meaning determined by surrounding words, not dictionary default. Test by substituting each option into the original sentence and keeping only the one preserving both sense and grammar.

Discursive passage

A passage that argues or discusses a topic from one or more viewpoints. Identify the writer's central claim separately from the evidence and examples used to support it.

Simile and metaphor

A simile compares using like or as; a metaphor asserts identity, saying one thing is another. Both create figurative meaning beyond literal description.

Blank verse

Unrhymed poetry written in iambic pentameter, five stressed-unstressed feet per line. Common in dramatic and reflective verse where rhyme would sound artificial.

Tone versus mood

Tone is the speaker's or writer's attitude towards the subject; mood is the emotional atmosphere created in the reader. Both need quoted textual support.

Enjambment

A sentence or phrase running past the end of a line into the next without a pause. It speeds reading and can signal urgency, overflow of feeling or informality.

Oxymoron

Two contradictory words placed together, such as bitter sweet or living death. It compresses tension or paradox into a single striking phrase.

Sonnet structure

A fourteen-line poem. The Petrarchan form divides into octave and sestet (abbaabba plus varied sestet); the Shakespearean form has three quatrains and a closing couplet.

Dramatic irony

A situation where the audience knows something a character does not, so the character's words carry a second meaning. It builds suspense or exposes folly.

Soliloquy and aside

A soliloquy is a speech delivered alone on stage revealing inner thought; an aside is a brief remark to the audience other characters cannot hear.

Hamartia

The error or flaw in a tragic protagonist that triggers the fall. It is a mistake in judgement or action, not simply a moral defect.

Foil character

A character whose qualities contrast with another's, making the other's traits visible. The contrast may be in temperament, loyalty, ambition or moral courage.

Narrative point of view

The perspective from which a story is told: first person, third-person limited, or omniscient. It controls what the reader can know and how reliable the account is.

Epiphany in fiction

A moment of sudden insight when a character understands something essential about self or situation. It often marks the story's turning point or resolution.

Satire

Writing that ridicules folly or vice through irony, exaggeration and understatement, aiming to correct rather than merely amuse. Always name the target being attacked.

Round versus flat character

A round character is complex, changeable and shown from several angles; a flat character is built around one dominant trait and stays largely unchanged.

Thesis in an essay

The central arguable claim the essay defends. Distinguish it from illustration, which is the anecdote or example offered as support.

Formal letter layout

Sender's address, date, receiver's designation and address, subject line, salutation, body paragraphs, subscription, signature and printed name, in that order.

Notice format

The word NOTICE, issuing organisation, date, bold heading, four to five lines covering what, when, where and who, then contact name and designation, usually boxed.

Report writing rules

Third person, past tense, factual sequence, heading with byline and dateline, and no personal opinion. Reports inform about events; they do not argue.

Speech structure

Address the audience and state the topic, develop two or three points with examples, then thank the audience and close with a call to action.

Letter of complaint

A formal letter stating the problem clearly, giving evidence such as dates or order numbers, and asking for a specific remedy. The tone stays firm and courteous.

Article format

Title, byline, opening paragraph naming the issue, two body paragraphs of argument with examples, and a concluding paragraph offering a suggestion or solution.

Reported speech shifts

When converting to indirect speech, move tense one step back, change pronouns to the reporter's viewpoint, and adjust time and place words such as now to then.

Third conditional

If plus past perfect, then would have plus past participle, for unreal past situations. Never pair would have with a present-tense if-clause.

Question tags

Short questions added to statements, taking the opposite polarity of the main clause and matching its auxiliary and subject, as in isn't it or didn't they.

Affect versus effect

Affect is usually a verb meaning to influence; effect is usually a noun meaning result. Check the word's grammatical role in the sentence before choosing.

Simple, compound, complex

Simple has one finite clause; compound joins coordinate clauses with and, but or or; complex contains a main clause plus at least one subordinate clause.

Degree transformation

Comparative and superlative statements can be rewritten without change of meaning: no other boy is as tall as Rahul equals Rahul is taller than any other boy.

Project report structure

Title, statement of purpose, methodology, evidence or data, analysis, conclusion, bibliography and acknowledgement. Each section has a distinct function in the rubric.