Grade 7 ELA – Semester 1
Terms to Know for the Final Exam
GRAMMAR
1. proper noun - a specific person, place, or thing that requires capitalization.
Examples: Busch Stadium, Snickers, Mary
2. common noun – a general person, place, thing, or idea.
Examples: ballpark, candy, girl
3. pronouns – replaces a noun:
Examples: I, me, my, mine, we, us, ours, you, your, yours, she, he, it, its, they, them, their, theirs
4. conjunctions – words that connect other words, phrases, or clauses
Examples: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so (FANBOYS)
5. transitions/transitional phrases – words/phrases that move a reader from point to point
Examples: first, on the other hand, next, finally, to begin with, after, last, to conclude
6. complete sentence/independent clause – a group of words that does have a subject and a verb and CAN
stand alone – also known as a complete sentence
7. adjectives – modifiy/describe a noun
8. adverb - modifies/describes a verb, an adjective, or an adverb
9. a subject and a predicate – A complete sentence must contain these two main items; a subject contains at
least one noun, and a predicate contains at least one verb.
10. compound sentence -This type of sentence is made up of two full/complete sentences joined together with
proper punctuation. A compound sentence can be joined together with: 1) a comma plus conjunction 2) a
semi-colon 3) semicolon plus adverbial conjunction plus comma
LITERARY DEVICES/FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
11. poetic writing – writing composed of lines and stanza
12. stanza - a poetic paragraph
13. line – a poetic sentence
14. rhyme - when words at the end of poetic lines match in sound
15. figurative language - hyperbole, imagery, metaphor, simile, alliteration, onomatopoeia, personification
16. literary devices – another term for figurative language or figures of speech
17. simile - a comparison between two unlike items using the words like or as
18. metaphor - a comparison between two unlike items not using the words like or as
19. personification - giving human qualities to non-human things
20. hyperbole – exaggeration for effect; unrealistic exaggeration to make a point
21. onomatopoeia – words that seem to sound similar to the sounds they describe
22. imagery - This type of figurative language uses writing to make the reader see, taste, touch, hear, and smell
the written picture being described.
23. alliteration - the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of words grouped closely in a sentence
24. portmanteau – two words combined together to create a completely new word (spoon + fork = spork)
25. pseudonym – a false name used by an author – For example: Mark Twain is the pseudonym for Samuel
Clemmons
WRITING
26. writing process -the steps a writer uses to develop a piece of writing
27. basic order of expository/informational writing: Topic Sentence, Supporting Detail, Supporting Detail,
Supporting Detail, Closing Sentence (TS-SD-SD-SD-CS)
28. topic sentence - the first sentence in a paragraph- its job is to state the main idea of the paragraph
29. an essay – a piece of writing that includes multiple paragraph in the specific order of: introduction, body
paragraphs, conclusion. **A basic academic essay has five paragraphs: introduction, body paragraph, body
paragraph, body paragraph, conclusion
30. thesis statement - a sentence that usually falls at the end of the first paragraph of a five paragraph essay
and states the main points of the essay
31. conclusion paragraph – restates the main points of the essay and ends with a clinching last statement
LITERATURE
32. prose – writing formatted in sentences and paragraphs
33. literary elements/plot elements - plot, exposition, setting, characters, conflict, rising action, climax, falling
action, resolution.
34. plot - the sequence of events in a story
35. plot diagram - basic order of the story: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, resolution
36. exposition – occurs at the beginning of a story and includes the setting, characters, conflict, and any
needed background information
37. setting - the place and time a story happens
38. characters – the people, animals, objects that play a role in the story
39. conflict - struggle in a story; problem.
40. rising action – everything between exposition and the climax, action leading to the climax
41. climax – the turning point of the story; it can coincide with the highest point of action
42. falling action – the events that occur between the climax and the resolution; it show the how the decision
arrived at the climax is worked out
43. resolution – the solving of the conflict
44. theme - the life lesson(s) learned from a story
45. tone – the author’s attitude that is found in the wording of a piece of writing
46. mood - the emotional reaction a reader feels after reading a piece of writing
47. flashback - a memory -when a character tells the reader something that happened in the past
48. foreshadowing – a hint as to what will happen in the story
49. point of view – the perspective from which a story is told
GENERAL COMMUNICATION ARTS TERMINOLOGY
50. author's purpose - the reason an author write: to either persuade, inform, entertain, or teach
51. context clues - information the reader finds in a text that helps him or her define an unknown word or
phrase
52. audience - the person or people to whom an author writes
53. paraphrase - to restate a portion of a piece of writing in your own words
54. summarize – to briefly restate/retell the main points of a whole piece of writing
55. graphic organizer - a visual device used for organizing information