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IB English A: Language and Literature

Readers, writers and texts practice questions.

197 exam-style questions on Readers, writers and texts with answers and explanations. Six real samples below — the full set is free with an account.

Syllabus

Topics covered

Key terms

Definitions you need

SITUATIONAL IRONY
Situational irony occurs when there is a sharp contrast between what is expected to happen and what actually happens (e.g. a fire station burns down). The outcome subverts reasonable expectation.
a BALLAD and name two typical features
A ballad is a narrative poem, often originally sung, that tells a dramatic or folk story. Typical features include four-line stanzas (quatrains), a regular rhyme scheme (often ABCB), a strong beat, and sometimes a refrain.
FRAME NARRATIVE (frame story)
A frame narrative is a story that contains another story (or stories) within it: an outer narrative sets up a situation in which an inner tale is told, like a picture within a frame.
a DACTYL and a SPONDEE
A dactyl is a foot of one stressed syllable followed by two unstressed (DUM-da-da, e.g. 'EL-e-phant'). A spondee is a foot of two consecutive stressed syllables (DUM-DUM, e.g. 'HEART-BREAK'), used for weight or emphasis.
synthetic personalisation (Norman Fairclough's term)
A technique in which a text addresses a mass audience as though speaking to each reader personally, using devices such as 'you' and a friendly tone to create a false sense of individual, one-to-one relationship.
enjambment
The continuation of a sentence or clause across a line break in poetry, without a pause or punctuation at the end of the line.
Try it

Sample questions

Which term names the repetition of a word or phrase at the START of successive clauses or lines?

  • Anaphora
  • Epistrophe
  • Assonance
  • Zeugma

Answer: Anaphora

Anaphora hammers a phrase at the beginning of successive lines (e.g. 'We shall fight... We shall fight...') to build rhythm and emphasis. Spot it by looking for the repeated opening words.

Repetition of a word or phrase at the END of successive clauses is called:

  • Anaphora
  • Epistrophe
  • Chiasmus
  • Antimetabole

Answer: Epistrophe

Epistrophe is the mirror of anaphora: the repeated words land at the end (e.g. '...of the people, by the people, for the people'). Check the line endings, not the openings.

The deliberate use of MANY conjunctions in quick succession ('and... and... and...') is called:

  • Asyndeton
  • Polysyndeton
  • Circumlocution
  • Anaphora

Answer: Polysyndeton

Polysyndeton stacks conjunctions to slow the pace, suggest accumulation, or create a weighty, overwhelming effect. If the 'and's are repeated on purpose, it's polysyndeton.

The repetition of consonant sounds, especially at the ends or middles of words (e.g. 'blank and think'), is called:

  • Assonance
  • Consonance
  • Sibilance
  • Cadence

Answer: Consonance

Consonance repeats consonant sounds anywhere in the word, not just the start. Alliteration is a special case limited to initial sounds.

An OXYMORON is best described as:

  • A long, sustained comparison across a whole poem
  • Two contradictory terms placed together
  • An exaggeration for effect
  • A reference to another text

Answer: Two contradictory terms placed together

An oxymoron yokes two opposite words into one phrase to spark a striking, compressed contradiction. It is smaller than a paradox, which is a whole contradictory statement or idea.

LITOTES is a figure of speech that creates emphasis by:

  • Deliberate exaggeration
  • Understatement using a double negative
  • Addressing an absent person
  • Repeating a line or phrase at regular intervals

Answer: Understatement using a double negative

Litotes affirms something by negating its opposite ('she's no fool'). It is a form of understatement and the tonal opposite of hyperbole.

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