JCE English flashcards
JCE English · Build recall with a focused review session.
32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.
- Main idea
- The central claim that the entire passage supports. It must cover all paragraphs without introducing information the passage never states.
- Supporting detail
- A specific fact, example, or statistic that backs the main idea. Detail questions ask what the passage states explicitly, not what it suggests.
- Valid inference
- A conclusion forced by the text plus common knowledge, requiring no extra assumption. If a choice needs outside facts, it is not supported.
- Scope error
- An answer choice that is broader or narrower than the passage. Words like all, never, and only often mark this trap.
- Author's tone
- The attitude revealed through word choice, graded in intensity. Critical is stronger than skeptical, which is stronger than merely cautious.
- Vocabulary in context
- Meaning determined by the surrounding sentence, not the dictionary's first entry. Substitute each option and keep the one preserving both sense and grammar.
- Paired-passage relationship
- How two authors connect: agreement, qualification, or direct disagreement. Identify each claim before judging the relationship between them.
- Subject-verb agreement
- The verb matches the head noun of the subject, ignoring intervening prepositional phrases. The box of tools is, not the box of tools are.
- Neither/nor agreement
- With neither...nor or either...or, the verb agrees with the nearer subject. Neither the manager nor the clerks were informed.
- Pronoun case
- Subjective forms (I, he, who) serve as subjects; objective forms (me, him, whom) serve as objects of verbs or prepositions.
- Restrictive clause
- A clause essential to the sentence's meaning, introduced by that with no commas. Removing it changes the core claim.
- Nonrestrictive clause
- A clause adding extra information, introduced by which and set off by commas. It can be removed without altering the main claim.
- Dangling modifier
- An opening phrase that fails to describe the subject of the main clause. Walking home, the rain started is faulty; Walking home, I saw rain is correct.
- Parallel structure
- Items joined by and, or, or not only...but also must share grammatical form: all nouns, all gerunds, or all infinitives.
- Logical comparison
- Comparisons must be complete and match like categories. Taller than any other student is correct; taller than any student is not.
- Context clue types
- Surrounding signals that reveal a word's meaning: definition (that is), contrast (but), example (such as), and cause-effect (because).
- Connotation
- The attitude a word carries beyond its literal sense. Thrifty is approving, frugal neutral, and stingy disapproving, though all mean careful with money.
- Imply versus infer
- A speaker implies, meaning suggests indirectly; a listener infers, meaning draws a conclusion. The direction of the action differs.
- Fewer versus less
- Fewer counts separable items (fewer chairs); less measures mass or degree (less water, less effort). Mixing them is a usage error.
- Flout versus flaunt
- Flout means openly disobey a rule; flaunt means display something conspicuously. They are frequently confused but unrelated in meaning.
- Appraise versus apprise
- Appraise means evaluate or set a value; apprise means inform someone of something. The second appears in the phrase keep apprised.
- Analogy relationship
- The fixed link between a pair, such as part to whole, cause to effect, or degree. State it as a sentence before testing the options.
- Sentence fragment
- A group of words missing a subject, a finite verb, or a complete thought. A subordinate clause standing alone is a fragment.
- Comma splice
- Two independent clauses joined by only a comma. Repair it with a period, a semicolon, or a coordinating conjunction.
- Fused sentence
- Two independent clauses run together with no punctuation. A semicolon or subordinating conjunction corrects the run-on.
- Semicolon use
- Separates two independent clauses, or separates list items that already contain commas. It never follows a sentence fragment.
- Colon use
- Follows a complete independent clause and introduces a list, an explanation, or a quotation. It never separates a verb from its object.
- Coordination versus subordination
- Coordination links equal ideas with and, but, or, so; subordination ranks them with although, because, while, placing the main point in the main clause.
- Active voice
- The subject performs the action, which usually shortens the sentence. Passive voice suits cases where the actor is unknown or irrelevant.
- Redundancy
- Repeating the same meaning in paired words or phrases, such as each and every, basic fundamentals, or return back. Deleting one word fixes it.
- Signpost words
- Discourse markers that flag structure in speech: however signals contrast, therefore signals conclusion, in fact signals emphasis or correction.
- Paraphrased answer
- A listening answer that restates the audio's idea in different words. Choices repeating the audio verbatim are usually distractors.