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caricature n An exaggerated representation of a person either in writing or in cartoons--usually achieved by exaggerating one or two features. Political cartoonists have long delighted in drawing caricatures of our Presidents; Teddy Roosevelt's toothy smile and Richard Nixon's pointy nose have been among their favorites.
denotation n The literal, or dictionary, meaning of a word. (As opposed to "connotation," the emotional overtones a word has). Though the denotation of the word "mother" is "female parent," it has rich connotative meanings running the gamut from the impossibly perfect June Cleaver to the horrifying Joan Crawford of Mommy Dearest.
diction n Diction is the selection and arrangement of words in relation to effective expression, also the general effectiveness of speaking and pronunciation. 1) Amy, I'm afraid you've used very poor diction in this essay; it betrays your poor and uneducated background. 2) You could tell from Reginald's precise pronunciation and flawless diction that he comes from an aristocratic family.
docile adj Calm and easily managed. Zoos, though they contain hundreds of wild animals, prefer them more docile than active; the calmer animals are less dangerous.
epigram
n
A briefly worded statement of wisdom, an adage. Will had a way of
writing in epigrams; on every page was at least one sentence that could stand
alone as a wise quotation.
imply v To suggest without saying directly. You said that my jacket should say "Goodyear" across the back. Are you trying to imply that I'm fat?
infer v To guess or surmise based on available evidence. Because we could see ships disappear over the horizon when they left and reappear upon return, we began to infer that the earth was round.
invocation n A special prayer or address asking for aid or mercy. 1) Before we began the service, the minister gave the invocation, asking for God's blessing. 2) Ancient poets always began a great work with the invocation to the muse of poetry, asking her help in the task ahead.
persona n A personality adopted for the purposes of acting or writing. Though David is a middle-aged author, he adopted the persona of a sixteen year old girl for his first person novel about romance in the war.
stereotype
n
A conventional, formulaic, and oversimplified conception, opinion, or
image. "Regional stereotypes have been part of America since its
founding--Westerners are trendy, Midwesterners are dull, Northeasterners are
brainy, and Southerners are lazy."