Literature & Storytelling
Books, poetry, narrative craft, literary forms, and the language of storytelling.
77 words
Download MarkdownSome words in this topic are A2–C2 — part of Pro. A1 words are always free.
Go ProA1 (1)
A2 (6) Pro
character
A2
/ˈkæɹ(ə)ktɚ/
A person in a story, film, or play.
M
S
romance
A2
/roʊˈmæn(t)s/
A romantic relationship or love affair between two people.
M
S
novel
A2
/ˈnɑvəl/
A long written story about imaginary people and events.
M
S
chapter
A2
/ˈt͡ʃæptɚ/
One of the main sections a book is divided into.
M
S
author
A2
/ˈɔθɚ/
A person who writes a book, article, or other work.
M
S
fiction
A2
/ˈfɪk.ʃən/
Stories about imaginary people and events, usually in the form of novels.
M
S
B1 (16) Pro
dramatic
B1
/dɹəˈmætɪk/
Sudden, large, and very noticeable.
M
S
theme
B1
/θiːm/
The main subject or idea of a book, film, talk, or piece of art.
M
S
setting
B1
/ˈsɛtɪŋ/
The time and place in which something happens, especially in a story.
M
S
fantasy
B1
/ˈfæntəsi/
Something you imagine that is pleasant but unlikely to happen.
M
S
tragedy
B1
/ˈtɹæd͡ʒɛdi/
A very sad event, especially one involving death or great loss.
M
S
comedy
B1
/ˈkɑmədi/
Entertainment, such as films or shows, that is meant to make people laugh.
M
S
poetry
B1
/ˈpoʊ.ə.tɹi/
Writing arranged in lines, often with rhythm or rhyme, that expresses feelings and ideas.
M
S
poem
B1
/ˈpoʊ.əm/
A piece of writing arranged in lines, often with rhythm or rhyme, that expresses feelings or ideas.
M
S
plot
B1
/plɑt/
The main events and story of a book, film, or play.
M
S
poet
B1
/ˈpoʊ.ət/
A person who writes poems.
M
S
myth
B1
/mɪθ/
A widely held but false belief or idea.
M
S
literature
B1
/ˈlɪt.ɚ.ə.t͡ʃɚ/
Written works such as novels, poems, and plays valued as art.
M
S
literary
B1
/ˈlɪtəɹɛ(ə)ɹi/
Relating to literature or written works.
M
S
narrative
B1
/ˈnæɹətɪv/
A story or an account of connected events.
M
S
novelist
B1
/ˈnɑvəlɪst/
A person who writes novels.
M
S
biography
B1
/baɪˈɑɡɹəfi/
The written story of a person's life.
M
S
B2 (16) Pro
narrator
B2
/ˈnæˌɹeɪtɚ/
The person who tells a story, especially the voice telling it in a book or film.
M
S
legend
B2
/ˈlɛd͡ʒ.ənd/
An old, well-known story that may not be completely true.
M
S
verse
B2
/ˈvɝs/
A group of lines that form one unit of a song or poem.
M
S
metaphor
B2
/ˈmɛt.ə.foɹ/
A way of describing something by calling it something else to suggest they are alike, without using 'like' or 'as'.
M
S
refrain
B2
/ɹɪˈfɹeɪn/
To stop yourself from doing something.
M
S
genre
B2
/ˈ(d)ʒɑnɹə/
A particular type or style of art, literature, music, or film.
M
S
ballad
B2
/ˈbæləd/
A slow, romantic song.
M
S
imagery
B2
/ˈɪmɪd͡ʒɹi/
Vivid language that creates pictures in the reader's mind, especially in writing.
M
S
prose
B2
/ˈpɹoʊz/
Ordinary written or spoken language, as opposed to poetry.
M
S
symbolism
B2
/ˈsɪmbəˌlɪzəm/
Representation of a concept through symbols or underlying meanings of objects or qualities.
M
S
bestseller
B2
/ˈbɛstˈsɛlɝ/
A book or product that sells in very large numbers.
M
S
sonnet
B2
/ˈsɒnɪt/
A poem of fourteen lines with a fixed rhyme scheme.
M
S
hyperbole
B2
/haɪˈpɝbəli/
Deliberate exaggeration used for emphasis or effect, not meant to be taken literally.
M
S
personification
B2
/pɚˌsɑ.nə.fəˈkeɪ.ʃən/
A way of writing that gives human qualities to an object, animal, or idea.
M
S
stanza
B2
/ˈstænzə/
A group of lines in a poem, like a paragraph in writing.
M
S
subplot
B2
/ˈsʌb.plɑt/
A second, less important story within the main story of a book, film, or play.
M
S
C1 (14) Pro
irony
C1
/ˈaɪ.ɹə.ni/
A situation that is strange or amusing because it is the opposite of what you expect.
M
S
manuscript
C1
/ˈmæn.jəˌskɹɪpt/
A written or typed version of a book or article before it is published.
M
S
climax
C1
/ˈklaɪ.mæks/
The most exciting or important point of an event, story, or career.
M
S
sequel
C1
/ˈsiːkwəl/
A book, film, or play that continues the story of an earlier one.
M
S
gothic
C1
/ˈɡɑθɪk/
of a European architectural style marked by pointed arches, ribbed vaults, and high, elaborate structures
M
S
flashback
C1
/ˈflæʃ.bæk/
A part of a film, book, or play that shows an earlier event, interrupting the main story.
M
S
autobiography
C1
/ˌɔtəbaɪˈɑːɡrəfi/
an account of a person's life written by that person
M
S
realism
C1
/ˈɹi.əlɪzəm/
A practical attitude that accepts the facts of a situation as they really are.
M
S
protagonist
C1
/pɹoʊˈtæɡ.ə.nɪst/
The main character in a story, film, or play.
M
S
memoir
C1
/ˈmɛmˌwɑɹ/
A book in which someone writes about their own life and experiences.
M
S
couplet
C1
/ˈkʌplət/
two successive lines of verse that form a unit, often sharing a meter and rhyme
M
S
characterization
C1
/ˌkæɹəktəɹəˈzeɪʃən/
The way a writer describes and develops the characters in a story.
M
S
novella
C1
/nəˈvɛlə/
a fictional prose narrative longer than a short story but shorter than a full-length novel
M
S
dystopia
C1
/dɪsˈtoʊ.pi.ə/
an imagined society in which oppressive rule or miserable living conditions make life deeply undesirable
M
S
C2 (14) Pro
epic
C2
/ˈep.ɪk/
constituting or having to do with or suggestive of a literary epic
M
S
suspense
C2
/səˈspɛns/
an uncertain cognitive state
M
S
ode
C2
/oʊd/
a formal lyric poem, often addressed to and celebrating or reflecting on a person, event, object, or idea
M
S
anecdote
C2
/ˈænəkˌdoʊt/
a short, often interesting or humorous account of a real incident
M
S
lyrical
C2
/ˈlɪɹɪkəl/
Expressing deep personal emotion in a beautiful way.
M
S
parable
C2
/ˈpæɹ.ə.bəl/
A short story that teaches a moral or religious lesson.
M
S
paperback
C2
/ˈpeɪ.pɚˌbæk/
a book bound with a flexible paper or card cover
M
S
allegory
C2
/ˈæləˌɡɔɹi/
A story whose characters and events stand for a deeper meaning, often a moral or political one.
M
S
epilogue
C2
/ˈɛp.ɪˌlɔɡ/
a concluding section added to a literary work that comments on or reveals what happens after the main narrative
M
S
surrealism
C2
/sɝˈiːlɪzəm/
An early 20th-century art and literary movement that used dreamlike, fantastic images to express the unconscious mind.
M
S
anthology
C2
/ænˈθɑləd͡ʒi/
A collection of poems, stories, or other writings, often by different authors.
M
S
allusion
C2
/əˈlu.ʒən/
An indirect mention of something the speaker expects you to recognize.
M
S
elegy
C2
/ˈɛləˌdʒiː/
A mournful or plaintive poem; a funeral song; a poem of lamentation.
M
S
dénouement
C2
/deɪˈnuː.mɑ̃ː/
the final part of a story or drama in which complications are resolved
M
S
C2+ (10) Pro
dialogue
C2+
/ˈdaɪəˌlɔɡ/
A conversation or other form of discourse between two or more individuals.
M
S
prologue
C2+
/ˈpɹoʊlɔɡ/
an opening speech or section that introduces a play, novel, or other work
M
S
antagonist
C2+
/ænˈtæɡənɪst/
a person who actively opposes or is hostile to another
M
S
fable
C2+
/ˈfeɪbəl/
a short tale conveying a moral, often with animal characters
M
S
narration
C2+
/næˈreɪʃən/
the act or process of telling a story or describing events
M
S
monologue
C2+
/ˈmɑnəlɔɡ/
a long speech by one speaker, especially in a play or performance
M
S
simile
C2+
/ˈsɪməli/
a figure of speech comparing two things using 'like' or 'as'
M
S
preface
C2+
/ˈprɛfəs/
an introduction to a book; to introduce or precede with remarks
M
S
satire
C2+
/ˈsætaɪɚ/
the use of irony or ridicule to expose folly or vice
M
S
utopia
C2+
/juˈtoʊpiə/
an imagined place of ideal perfection in laws, government, and society
M
S
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