Question 1

Theme

Accepted Answer

Central message or insight revealed through a literary work.

Question 2

Tone

Accepted Answer

The attitude a writer takes towards a subject or an audience.

Question 3

Hyperbole

Accepted Answer

Exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally.

Question 4

Onomatopoeia

Accepted Answer

The use of words that imitate the sound they denote.

Question 5

Oxymoron

Accepted Answer

A figure of speech that combines two contradictory terms.

Question 6

Anecdote

Accepted Answer

A short and amusing or interesting story about a real incident or person.

Question 7

Denotation

Accepted Answer

The dictionary definition of a word.

Question 8

Connotation

Accepted Answer

The emotional or cultural association with a word beyond its dictionary definition.

Question 9

Foreshadowing

Accepted Answer

A narrative device that hints at coming events; often builds suspense or anxiety in the reader.

Question 10

Point of View

Accepted Answer

The perspective from which a story is told.

Question 11

Inference

Accepted Answer

A conclusion reached on the basis of evidence and reasoning.

Question 12

Primary Source

Accepted Answer

Original materials that have not been altered or distorted in any way.

Question 13

Secondary Source

Accepted Answer

Interpretations and evaluations of primary sources.

Question 14

Metaphor

Accepted Answer

A figure of speech that identifies something as being the same as some unrelated thing for rhetorical effect.

Question 15

Simile

Accepted Answer

A figure of speech that directly compares two things.

Question 16

Satire

Accepted Answer

The use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices.

Question 17

Protagonist

Accepted Answer

The main character in a story.

Question 18

Antagonist

Accepted Answer

The character or force that opposes the protagonist.

Question 19

Idiom

Accepted Answer

A common, often used expression that doesn't make sense if you take it literally.

Question 20

Allegory

Accepted Answer

A story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning.

Question 21

Soliloquy

Accepted Answer

An act of speaking one's thoughts aloud when by oneself or regardless of any hearers.

Question 22

Sonnet

Accepted Answer

A 14-line poem written in iambic pentameter.

Question 23

Haiku

Accepted Answer

A form of poetry, first made popular in Japan, that is comprised of three lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables.

Question 24

Limerick

Accepted Answer

A humorous verse form of 5 anapestic lines with a rhyme scheme aabba.

Question 25

Climax

Accepted Answer

The most intense, exciting, or important point of something.

Question 26

Denouement

Accepted Answer

The final resolution of the intricacies of a plot.

Question 27

Allusion

Accepted Answer

A reference to a well-known person, place, event, literary work, or work of art.

Question 28

Syntax

Accepted Answer

The arrangement of words and phrases to create well-formed sentences.

Question 29

Paradox

Accepted Answer

A statement that appears self-contradictory, but in reality expresses a possible truth.

Question 30

Dramatic Irony

Accepted Answer

When the audience knows something the characters do not.

Question 31

Situational Irony

Accepted Answer

An outcome that turns out to be very different from what was expected.

Question 32

Verbal Irony

Accepted Answer

A figure of speech in which what is said is the opposite of what is meant.

Question 33

Linear Equation

Accepted Answer

An equation between two variables that produces a straight line when graphed.

Question 34

Quadratic Equation

Accepted Answer

A second-order polynomial equation in a single variable x.

Question 35

Rational Number

Accepted Answer

A number that can be expressed as a fraction.

Question 36

Irrational Number

Accepted Answer

A number that cannot be expressed as a fraction.

Question 37

Absolute Value

Accepted Answer

The distance a number is from zero on a number line.

Question 38

Binomial

Accepted Answer

An algebraic expression of the sum or the difference of two terms.

Question 39

Histogram

Accepted Answer

A graphical display of data using bars of different heights.

Question 40

Hypotenuse

Accepted Answer

The side of a right-angled triangle that is opposite the right angle.

Question 41

Pythagorean Theorem

Accepted Answer

The theorem stating that the square of the hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the squares of the other two sides.

Question 42

Mean

Accepted Answer

The average value of a set of numbers.

Question 43

Median

Accepted Answer

The middle number in a set of numbers.

Question 44

Mode

Accepted Answer

The number that appears most frequently in a set of numbers.

Question 45

Range

Accepted Answer

The difference between the highest and lowest values in a set of numbers.

Question 46

Exponential Function

Accepted Answer

A mathematical function of the form f(x) = a^x, where a > 0.

Question 47

Logarithm

Accepted Answer

The exponent to which the base must be raised to get the number that is logged.

Question 48

Scatter Plot

Accepted Answer

A graph in which the values of two variables are plotted along two axes.

Question 49

Bar Graph

Accepted Answer

A graph drawn using rectangular bars to show quantities or numbers that are compared.

Question 50

Probability

Accepted Answer

The measure of the likelihood that an event will occur.

Question 51

Complementary Angles

Accepted Answer

Two angles whose measures add up to 90 degrees.

Question 52

Supplementary Angles

Accepted Answer

Two angles whose measures add up to 180 degrees.

Question 53

Pythagorean Triple

Accepted Answer

A set of three positive integers a, b, and c that fit the rule a^2 + b^2 = c^2.

Question 54

Fraction

Accepted Answer

A mathematical expression representing the division of one whole number by another.

Question 55

Decimal

Accepted Answer

A number expressed in the base-ten system.

Question 56

Percent

Accepted Answer

A ratio or fraction expressed as a part of 100.

Question 57

Ratio

Accepted Answer

A comparison of two quantities by division.

Question 58

Proportion

Accepted Answer

An equation stating that two ratios are equal.

Question 59

Prime Number

Accepted Answer

A number that has exactly two distinct natural number divisors: 1 and itself.

Question 60

Composite Number

Accepted Answer

A positive integer that has at least one positive divisor other than one or itself.

Question 61

Photosynthesis

Accepted Answer

The process by which green plants and some other organisms use sunlight to synthesize foods with the aid of chlorophyll.

Question 62

Cellular Respiration

Accepted Answer

The process by which the chemical energy of "food" molecules is released and partially captured in the form of ATP.

Question 63

Mitosis

Accepted Answer

A type of cell division that results in two daughter cells each having the same number and kind of chromosomes as the parent nucleus.

Question 64

Meiosis

Accepted Answer

A type of cell division that results in four daughter cells each with half the number of chromosomes of the parent cell.

Advanced PSSA Flashcards: Master Key Concepts for Success