KSEAB SSLC Urdu (Third Language 66U) key terms

A short lyrical Urdu poem, usually five to fifteen couplets, in which every couplet has its own idea but both lines of each couplet share the same rhyme and refrain. Love, loss and reflection are common themes.

The opening couplet of a ghazal, in which both lines carry the rhyme and refrain. It sets the pattern that later couplets follow in their second line.

The closing couplet of a ghazal, often carrying the poet's pen name. It usually sums up the poem's mood or offers a final turn of thought.

The repeated word or short phrase that comes after the rhyme at the end of each couplet's second line in a ghazal. It must be identical in every couplet.

The rhyming word that comes immediately before the ردیف at the end of a verse line. All rhyming lines of a poem share the same قافیہ sound.

The pen name a poet inserts into the last couplet of a ghazal, addressing himself in third or second person. It identifies the author within the poem.

A simile: an explicit comparison between two things using words such as مانند, جیسا or طرح. It states that one thing resembles another in a shared quality.

A metaphor: a comparison in which one thing is spoken of as if it were another, without a comparing word. The resemblance is implied rather than stated directly.

An indirect expression whose intended meaning is understood by convention rather than from the literal words. The reader infers the sense from common usage.

The use of a word in a transferred, non-literal sense, where the link is by association rather than resemblance. It includes devices such as کنایہ and استعارہ.

A rhetorical device or figure of speech in Urdu poetics, such as تجنیس, تضاد or حسن تعلیل. Naming and explaining the صنعت is a common appreciation question.

The figure in which two opposite ideas or words are placed close together for contrast, such as شب and روز or موت and حیات. The clash sharpens the meaning.

A wordplay figure in which two words look or sound alike but carry different meanings. It relies on the double sense of similar forms.

The metrical pattern of a poem, fixed by the length and arrangement of syllables in each line. A line that breaks the بحر is considered faulty in recitation.

A single line or hemistich of Urdu verse. A couplet (شعر) normally consists of two مصرع, the first and the second.

A couplet: two lines of verse that together form one complete unit of meaning in a ghazal or نظم. Each couplet can stand on its own.

A poem written in continuous form on a single theme, rather than as independent couplets. Its lines usually share one rhyme scheme throughout.

An elegy: a poem mourning a death, especially one commemorating the martyrs of Karbala. It blends grief, praise and narrative over many stanzas.

A long formal ode in Urdu, traditionally opening with praise or description and often ending with petition or eulogy. It follows a single rhyme through all lines.

The author or writer of a prose text, such as a lesson, essay or story. Questions about مصنف ask for the writer's name and often his period.

A prescribed prose lesson in the textbook. Questions on a سبق test its content, central idea, characters and the writer's purpose.

The main idea or central message that a lesson or poem conveys as a whole. It is usually stated in one or two sentences, not as a plot summary.

A character in a story or lesson. Character questions ask what a person did, said or felt, and what qualities those actions reveal.

The title of a lesson or poem. Explaining why the عنوان suits the text is a frequent short-answer question in the prose section.

Moral conduct and the values a text promotes, such as honesty, patience, service or kindness. Many prescribed lessons are written to teach اخلاق through example.

A noun: a word naming a person, place, thing or abstract idea. In Urdu grammar it is classified further by gender, number and type.

A verb: a word expressing an action, state or occurrence, such as لکھنا or ہونا. It changes form for tense, person, gender and number.

An adjective: a word that describes or qualifies a noun, such as اچھا, بڑا or خوبصورت. In Urdu it usually precedes the noun it modifies.

Grammatical tense: the time reference of a verb, whether past (ماضی), present (حال) or future (مستقبل). Choosing the right زمانہ is tested in sentence-filling items.

The conjugation of a verb through its tenses, persons, genders and numbers. Knowing a verb's گردان is needed to supply correctly inflected forms.

The singular grammatical number, referring to one person or thing, as opposed to جمع. Nouns, pronouns and verbs all agree in number in Urdu.

The plural grammatical number, referring to more than one. Urdu forms plurals by adding endings or changing internal vowels, and verbs must agree with them.

The masculine grammatical gender of a noun or adjective. Every Urdu noun is either مذکر or مؤنث, and this affects verb and adjective agreement.

The feminine grammatical gender of a noun or adjective. Some nouns are feminine by convention rather than by meaning, so the pair must be memorised.

A synonym: a word having the same or nearly the same meaning as another, such as خوش and مسرور. Synonym items ask for a word of matching sense.

An antonym: a word opposite in meaning to another, such as اندھیرا and روشنی. Antonym items ask the candidate to supply the contrary word.

An idiom: a fixed group of words whose meaning cannot be worked out from the individual words, such as آنکھ کا تارا. Idioms must be learnt whole.

A proverb: a short traditional saying that expresses common wisdom, such as دیر آید درست آید. Proverbs are tested for meaning and for appropriate use in sentences.

A formal written application or request, usually addressed to an authority for leave, admission, a certificate or similar purpose. It follows a fixed layout and polite register.

A letter: a written message to a person, either personal or formal. Letter questions test correct salutation, body, closing and address conventions.

A composition or essay written on a given topic. It needs an introduction, several developed paragraphs and a conclusion, all in one consistent register.

A paragraph: a group of sentences developing one idea, usually opened by a topic sentence. Paragraph-writing items test unity, order and linking words.

Translation: rendering a passage from Urdu into English or from English into Urdu while keeping the meaning and natural word order of the target language.

A non-detailed or supplementary lesson, read for general understanding rather than close textual study. Questions ask for the gist, characters and simple inferences.