Chapter 11: Language
Learning Objectives
- Explain how language is used for power.
- Describe how language choices affect the effectiveness of public speaking.
- Explain the standard of clarity.
- Choose clear language that is appropriate for audiences.
- Determine your own language ability in speaking.
Key Terms
language that evokes many different visual images in the minds of your audience
the repetition of initial consonant sounds in a sentence or passage
the succession of sentences beginning with the same word or group of words
the juxtaposition of contrasting ideas in balanced or parallel words, phrases, or grammatical structures
how persons and groups should be referred to and addressed based on inclusiveness and context
the repetition of vowel sounds in a sentence or passage
predictable and generally overused expressions; usually similes
the subjective or personal meaning the word evokes in people together or individually
the objective or literal meaning shared by most people using the word
a group an individual identifies with based on a common culture
language devices often used to make something unpleasant sound more tolerable
language that does not use comparisons like similes and metaphors
intentional exaggeration for effect
language that makes the recipient smell, taste, see, hear, and feel a sensation; also known as sensory language
the expression of one’s meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, typically for humorous or emphatic effect
language used in a specific field that may or may not be understood by others
any formal system of gestures, signs, sounds, and symbols used or conceived as a means of communicating thought, either through written, enacted, or spoken means
language that does not use comparisons like similes and metaphors
a figure of speech that identifies something as being the same as some unrelated thing for rhetorical effect, thus highlighting the similarities between the two
the repetition of grammatical structures that correspond in sound, meter, or meaning
a figure of speech involving the comparison of one thing with another thing of a different kind (specifically using the terms “like” or “as”), used to make a description more emphatic or vivid
a type of language that consists of words and phrases that are specific to a subculture or group that others may not understand
