Tamil Nadu HSE Second Year English key terms

The central idea or insight a text offers about life or human nature, such as courage, inequality or the value of freedom. It is expressed as a full idea rather than a single topic word, and must be supported by characters, events and recurring images.

The techniques a writer uses to build a person in a story: what the character says and does, how others respond, and what the narrator reveals. Direct characterisation states traits openly; indirect characterisation shows them through speech and action.

The reason a writer produces a text: to inform, persuade, entertain or reflect. Identifying it helps you judge whether the language is factual, emotional or humorous, and explains why the passage is organised as it is.

The perspective from which a story is told, such as first person ('I'), third-person limited, or omniscient. The choice controls what the reader is allowed to know and shapes sympathy for particular characters.

The time and place in which events unfold, including the social conditions around them. Setting can create mood, explain why characters behave as they do, or work symbolically, as a drought-hit village may stand for suffering.

Repetition of the same initial consonant sound in nearby words, as in 'wild and windy weather'. Poets use it to tighten rhythm, link related ideas, or echo a sound in the real world.

A comparison in which one thing is spoken of as another without using 'like' or 'as', such as calling hope a bird. It transfers qualities from one field to another and asks the reader to see a fresh connection.

An explicit comparison using 'like' or 'as', for example 'bright as a new coin'. It turns an abstract quality into something concrete and visible, and usually makes a description sharper.

Giving human qualities to non-human things, as when the wind whispers or the moon smiles. It creates atmosphere and can make abstract forces feel alive, watchful and morally present.

The pattern of end rhymes in a poem, recorded in letters: abab means lines one and three rhyme while lines two and four rhyme. A change in the pattern often signals a shift in mood or argument.

The speaker's attitude towards the subject, revealed through word choice, rhythm and punctuation, for example admiring, bitter or mocking. Tone belongs to the writer's voice and should not be confused with the reader's mood.

Language that appeals to the senses, sight, sound, smell, taste and touch, in order to create pictures in the reader's mind. Concrete imagery often carries a poem's emotional weight more effectively than direct statement.

A gap between what is said or expected and what is actually meant or actually happens. Verbal irony says the opposite of what is meant, while situational irony reverses expectations and invites the reader to interpret critically.

An object, place or action that stands for a larger idea beyond its literal meaning, such as a caged bird standing for imprisonment. Symbols gain force from repetition and from the associations a text builds around them.

A group of lines set apart in a poem, roughly the equivalent of a paragraph in prose. Stanza length and arrangement control the pace of reading and show how the poem's ideas are grouped.

The ordered sequence of events in a story, generally moving through exposition, rising action, climax, falling action and resolution. Plot is what happens; meaning depends on how those events are linked by cause and consequence.

The struggle between opposing forces that drives a story: a person against another person, society, nature or the self. Conflict creates suspense and reveals character most clearly at moments of pressure.

The point of greatest tension, where the main conflict is finally decided and after which the story moves towards resolution. Locating it helps you explain turning points in character and the direction of the theme.

The central character whose choices and fortunes the narrative follows, not necessarily an admirable or heroic figure. The protagonist's change, or refusal to change, usually carries the work's central theme.

The single most important point a paragraph or passage makes, broader than any supporting detail. It may be stated in a topic sentence or left implied, and every other sentence should explain or illustrate it.

Information in the surrounding words that helps you work out an unfamiliar word's meaning: a definition, an example, a contrast, or a cause-and-effect relation in the same sentence or the next one.

Reading quickly to locate a specific detail such as a date, name or figure without reading every word. It differs from skimming, which gives a general impression of what a passage is about.

A conclusion drawn from evidence in the text together with general knowledge, rather than stated outright. A valid inference must be supported by clues the writer has actually given, not by guesswork.

Restating a text's meaning in your own words while keeping its sense and roughly its length. It demonstrates understanding and differs from a summary, which compresses the original into far fewer words.

The verb form that shows when an action happens, present, past or future, and whether it is simple, continuous, perfect or perfect continuous. Keeping tenses consistent makes narration and reporting clear.

A construction in which the object of the action becomes the subject, as in 'The letter was written by Ravi'. It is chosen when the doer is unknown or unimportant, or when formal distance is required.

Conveying someone's words indirectly, without quotation marks. Pronouns, tense and time expressions usually shift back, so 'I am tired' becomes 'He said that he was tired'.

A sentence containing an if-clause and a main clause that states a real or imagined condition. Zero and first conditionals handle facts and likely results; second and third describe unreal present or past situations.

A subordinate clause introduced by who, which, that, whose or where, describing a noun, as in 'the boy who won'. Defining clauses identify the noun; non-defining clauses merely add information and sit between commas.

A word showing the relation between a noun or pronoun and another element, as in 'on the table', 'afraid of' and 'good at'. Fixed combinations must be learned as collocations rather than translated word for word.

A fixed expression whose meaning cannot be worked out from its individual words, such as 'a bolt from the blue'. Idioms belong to informal registers and should be used sparingly in formal writing.

A word whose meaning is close to another, such as 'begin' and 'commence'. Exact equivalents are rare, so register, collocation and connotation decide which of several synonyms fits a given sentence.

A word expressing the opposite of another, such as 'scarce' for 'abundant'. Opposites may be gradable, like hot and cold, or complementary, like alive and dead, and the pair chosen must match the context.

The different grammatical shapes a root word takes, for example decide, decision, decisive and decisively. Choosing the correct form depends on the word's function in the sentence as noun, verb, adjective or adverb.

A letter to an official, editor or business, following a fixed layout: sender's address, date, receiver's address, salutation, subject line, body and closing. The style stays impersonal and avoids contractions and slang.

A short public announcement displayed on a board or circulated to a group, stating who, what, when, where and whom to contact. It uses a heading, brief factual sentences, and the writer's name and designation.

A factual account of an event written for a newspaper, school magazine or authority. It answers what, when, where, who and why, is written in the past tense and third person, and carries a headline.

A shortened restatement of a passage in your own words, keeping the main points in proportion and in logical order. It usually carries a word limit and must not add opinion or examples of your own.

A digital message with a subject line and salutation. Formal email follows letter conventions with complete sentences and no contractions, while informal email is relaxed; in both, clarity and brevity matter most.

A persuasive piece of commercial or public-interest writing that combines a catchy slogan, short persuasive text and a call to action. It appeals to needs, emotions and aspirations rather than offering neutral information.