NSSCAS Otjiherero First Language 8193 key terms

The main point a passage makes about its subject, stated or implied. A reader who can state the central idea in one sentence has understood the text's overall message rather than isolated details.

A conclusion a reader draws from clues in the text plus background knowledge, when the writer does not state the point directly. Inference questions ask what is suggested or implied rather than what is literally said.

The attitude a writer or speaker conveys towards the subject or audience, shown through word choice and sentence style. Tone may be serious, mocking, sympathetic or critical, and it differs from the mood felt by the reader.

A short account of a text's main points in your own words, leaving out examples and repetition. A good summary keeps the original order of ideas and stays within a stated word limit.

A restatement of a short passage in different words while keeping the same meaning and level of detail. Unlike a summary, a paraphrase does not shorten or select; it rewrites the same content.

The sentence, usually first in a paragraph, that announces the paragraph's main point and controls what follows. Later sentences support it with explanation, evidence or examples.

Writing that tells a story with characters, setting and a sequence of events leading to a complication and resolution. In Otjiherero composition it may draw on oral storytelling conventions such as direct speech and formulaic openings.

Writing that creates a picture of a person, place, object or feeling through sensory detail and figurative language. It is organised by space or impression rather than by chronological events.

Writing that takes a clear position on a debatable issue and defends it with reasons and evidence, while acknowledging and answering opposing views. Its purpose is to persuade the reader to accept one side.

Writing that explores several sides of a topic in a balanced way before reaching a considered conclusion. Unlike argumentative writing, it does not begin with a fixed position to defend.

The way sentences and paragraphs are linked so a text reads as a connected whole. Devices include pronouns, conjunctions, repeated key words and consistent reference to the same people and things.

A single sentence in an essay's introduction that states the main claim or line of argument the essay will develop. Everything in the body should support or illustrate it.

One of the numbered categories in Bantu languages such as Otjiherero into which nouns are grouped by prefix, for example omu-, otji-, oru- and oku-. Class membership controls agreement on verbs, adjectives and pronouns.

The prefix on a verb that agrees with the subject noun in noun class and person, for example the u- that matches omundu (person). Choosing the wrong concord is a common grammar error.

Tense locates an event in time (past, present, future); aspect shows whether it is complete, ongoing or repeated. Otjiherero verb forms combine both, so a single ending may mark past time and completion together.

A vivid word that imitates a sound, movement or manner, often used in Otjiherero narrative to intensify description. Ideophones stand outside normal verb conjugation and add sensory force to a scene.

The accepted system for writing a language: which letters are used, how words are spelled and how sounds map to symbols. Standard Otjiherero orthography follows conventions set for the language, not English spelling habits.

A word adopted from another language and adapted to the borrowing language's sound and grammar. Otjiherero has taken words from Afrikaans, English and German, sometimes with the original meaning narrowed.

A fixed expression whose meaning cannot be worked out from its individual words, such as a set phrase describing anger or haste. Idioms carry cultural values and should be used in the right register.

An antonym is a word with the opposite meaning to another; a synonym is a word with a similar meaning. Precise writing depends on choosing between near-synonyms that differ in strength or formality.

A sentence pattern in which the receiver of the action becomes the subject, as when 'the child wrote the letter' becomes 'the letter was written by the child'. Otjiherero passives are often marked by a -w- suffix and shift emphasis.

Direct speech quotes a speaker's exact words inside quotation marks; indirect speech reports them without quotation, shifting pronouns and tense. Otjiherero also adjusts demonstratives and time words in reported speech.

The methods a writer uses to build a character: description, actions, speech, thoughts and other characters' reactions. Characters may be round and changing or flat and fixed.

The time and place in which a story happens, including social and historical conditions. Setting can shape plot and character, and it may carry symbolic weight beyond physical location.

A central idea or insight about life that a literary text explores, such as loyalty, loss or the conflict between tradition and change. Themes are conveyed through repeated patterns rather than stated once.

The voice that tells a story. A first-person narrator is a character inside the events; a third-person narrator stands outside, and may be limited to one viewpoint or know everything.

Descriptive language that appeals to the senses and creates mental pictures. In Otjiherero praise and narrative, imagery often draws on cattle, landscape, fire, rain and family relationships.

A deliberate departure from literal language for effect, including simile, metaphor, personification and hyperbole. Identifying a figure of speech means naming its type and explaining the effect it creates.

Proverbs and set sayings in Otjiherero that condense communal wisdom into a few words. They are used in speech, debate and literature to support a point, and often need cultural knowledge to interpret.

A praise poem in Otjiherero oral tradition, honouring a person, clan or animal through accumulated epithets and vivid imagery. Praise poetry shapes modern written poetry and formal speeches.

The Otjiherero clan or lineage, a named descent group with its own history, totem and ritual obligations. Clan membership guides marriage rules, inheritance and obligations at funerals.

The traditional Otjiherero homestead, a family settlement with huts and cattle enclosure arranged around social and ritual spaces. The word also carries associations of hospitality, authority and belonging.

Otjiherero custom or tradition, the inherited body of proper practice in marriage, mourning, hospitality and respect. Appeals to okuruwo often feature in argumentative and cultural texts.

The level of formality and the style of language suited to a particular situation and audience. A speech at a funeral, a letter to an official and a chat with friends require different registers.

Moving between Otjiherero and another language such as English or Afrikaans within a conversation or text. It can signal education, group identity or a gap in vocabulary, and its effect varies by context.

Checking a finished draft for errors in spelling, punctuation, agreement and word division before submission. Proofreading follows editing, which deals with structure and meaning rather than surface accuracy.

Rewriting a sentence or short text in a required way while keeping the meaning, for example changing active to passive, direct to indirect speech, or singular to plural. It tests control of grammar rather than content.