Vocabulary Literary Terms

Front

plummeted

Back

fell or dropped very quickly and suddenly

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analyze

Back

to examine something in detail to understand it better

Front

approximately

Back

close to, but not exactly; about

Front

figurative

Back

using imaginative comparisons or figures of speech instead of the exact, surface meaning

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literal

Back

taking words in their most basic, factual sense, without exaggeration or symbolism

Front

connotation

Back

the extra feelings or ideas a word suggests beyond its dictionary meaning (e.g., “cheap” feels negative)

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denotation

Back

the strict, dictionary definition of a word

Front

idiom

Back

a common phrase whose meaning can’t be understood word-for-word (e.g., “kick the bucket” = die)

Front

metaphor

Back

a direct comparison saying one thing is another to show a similarity (“time is a thief”)

Front

simile

Back

a comparison using like or as (“quiet as a mouse”).