Literary terms

In the HISTORY of the UNIVERSE Hyperbole Hyperbole Is without a doubt the SINGLE Greatest Thing In the HISTORY of the UNIVERSE

Allison Dykstra writes….. But what I really want to know is… Is your cupcake really the BEST cupcake ever baked? Is that massage truly the GREATEST massage in the WHOLE WORLD? Has that musical artist actually penned the MOST AMAZING song in the HISTORY OF TIME?

Hyperbole continued…… Aside from being rather boring statements, these claims are simply not fair, not measurable, and so full of hyperbole that I’m getting a little sick. While the over-hyperbolic nature of status updates is a personal pet peeve, (like the people who post “BEST weekend EVER” every weekend), it is also a sticking point for me professionally when companies start to claim perfection without offering validation or reason. There are certainly products and services out there that do fly high above the rest. However, is it possible we’ve dumbed down our speech so much that we can’t come up with anything else to say outside of touting unfounded superiority?

Onomotopeia

Irony a meaning of words in context that differs from, or is opposite of the literal meaning.

Irony

Personfication

Parallelism

Pun

simile

Antonym A word opposite in meaning to another word.

Dramatic irony A situation in which the significance of a character’s words or actions is clear to the audience or reader but unknown to the character.

Explicit teaching direct, purposeful teaching of specific knowledge, skills or strategies.

Implicit teaching Ideas and concepts that are present but stated indirectly.

foreshadowing

Oxymoron a combination of words with contradictory meanings, used deliberately for effect

Synonyms a word that has the same or almost the same meaning as another word

Thesis statement The statement in an essay that communicates the writer’s main point and purpose. It answers these three questions: What is my topic? Why is it important? How will I develop it?