AICE English Language AS Level

Hello, and welcome to AICE English Language! We are excited to have you join in an
adventure through various forms of text. Below, please find the pre course
assignments for AICE English Language AS Assignment Parts.
There are 2 parts that make up our Summer Assignment. This Summer Assignment will be due the
first day of class. If you are new to CCHS, you will have the first quarter to complete the assignment,
so don’t worry. Those that were registered, please come prepared.

Part 1: Glossary of Terms Study Guide

Please use the Glossary of Terms provided and create a handwritten study guide. For example, flash
cards with the word, definition, and an example or a Power Point with the same information for each
term on a slide. Creativity is encouraged. Students could also hand write a list of the words,
definitions, and examples, any handwritten method will suffice.

Part 2: Memoir Review

Select a Memoir for your summer reading. A memoir covers a specific period or an experience
within a person’s life. It is non-fiction and gives a glance into the life and experiences of another real
person. You may select any memoir that your parent or guardian agrees that you can read. Please
select memoirs published in the last 10 years (2014 and after). You will need to annotate this book
for the Summer Assignment and therefore submit the book for a grade. Please avoid using library
books or books that belong to another person as they may not be returned promptly.

These are the steps necessary to complete the Memoir Review portion of the Summer Assignment:

1. Read your novel carefully. Take your time and enjoy it! If you don’t “connect” with your
choice of novel, feel free to choose another.
2. Annotate your novel- good notes tend to enhance comprehension and retention of ideas.
Your annotations should be handwritten (ex. in the novel, on sticky notes in the novel, or on
separate paper). See attached sheet for more specific details on annotations. You should
also annotate for any of the devices that you learned in the Glossary of Terms from Part 1 of
the Summer Assignment.
3. Quote Response: Choose at least 12 quotes that stand out to you from the memoir. Using
the quote log provided, also add your reflection on why the quote resonates with you.
4. Write a Review of your book. This is not a book report. You will critique and analyze
elements of the novel you selected. Please Google and look over book reviews to get a
sense of what you will need to write.
 Cambridge International AS & A Level

Cambridge International AS & A Level English

Language 9093 – Glossary of terms
Contents
Word and meaning .................................................................................................................................................................1
Sentence and grammar .........................................................................................................................................................2
Text and discourse .................................................................................................................................................................4
Sound and spoken language .................................................................................................................................................6
Language analysis and language topics................................................................................................................................7

Word and meaning

Term What it means
Acronym A word formed from the initial letters of two or more successive words (e.g. UNESCO: United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation)
Amelioration Where a word takes on a more positive connotation over time (e.g. nice originally meant foolish)
Antonym A word with the opposite meaning to another word
Archaism A word which is no longer in everyday use, or has lost a particular meaning in current usage
Backformation The formation of a word from another one, from which it appears to be derived (e.g. the verb to
babysit from the earlier babysitter)
Blending Forming a new word by combining the beginning of one word with the end of another (e.g. motel
from motor and hotel)
Borrowing Introducing specific words or forms of words from one language into another (e.g. pasta from
Italian into English, or weekend from English into French)
Broadening Where the meaning of a word becomes broader or more inclusive than its earlier meaning (e.g.
the earlier meaning of dog referred to a specific breed of dog rather than the whole species)
Clipping Where a word is shortened to form a new variant (e.g. advertisement becomes ad or advert)
Coinage The creation of new words (i.e. neologisms) in a language
Colloquial The casual conversation of everyday language
Compounding Forming a word from two or more units that are themselves words (e.g. whiteboard from white and
board)
Connotation The range of associated meanings brought to mind by a particular word, beyond its essential
meaning (or denotation)
Conversion Creating a new word by using an existing word in a different word class (e.g. the noun green in
golf was converted from the adjective green)
Denotation The primary meaning of a word, not including its connotations
Derivation Creating a new word from an existing word, often with the addition of a prefix or suffix (e.g.
unwilling derives from will with the prefix un- and the suffix -ing)
Eponym The name of something that is also the name of someone credited with inventing or discovering it

Cambridge International AS & A Level English Language 9093 – Glossary of terms 1

 Term What it means
Etymology A study of the history of a word and its earlier forms and meanings
Figurative Language which expands upon the basic or literal meaning of a word or phrase (e.g. simile or
language metaphor)
Hypernyms Words for the categories into which hyponyms may be grouped (e.g. furniture is a hypernym of
table)
Hyponyms Words that are specific compared to their respective hypernyms (e.g. spoon is a hyponym of
cutlery)
Idiom Phrases generally understood in a language but which do not directly translate (e.g. I caught the
train by the skin of my teeth = I only just caught the train in time)
Intensifier A word, often an adverb or adjective, which has little meaning by itself but is used to add force to
other phrases (e.g. really, very)
Jargon Words and phrases known primarily by a group of people – often within a particular profession –
which enable them to exchange complex information efficiently. Jargon may be unintelligible to
people outside the group who use it.
Lexis The complete vocabulary of a language
Narrowing When the meaning of a word becomes narrower or more limited than its earlier meaning (e.g. the
earlier form of meat originally referred to all food but now generally only refers to food in the form
of animal flesh)
Neology The process through which new words (neologisms) are formed, including acronyms, blends,
compounds and eponyms
Obsolete In language, relates to words which are no longer in use and often no longer understood
Orthography The part of the language concerned with letters and spelling
Pejoration When a word takes on a more negative connotation over time (e.g. silly once meant blessed)
Root The primary form of a word and word family, without prefixes or suffixes, which bears the major
semantic content (e.g. the root of unwanted is want)
Semantic Related to the meaning of words
Semantic field A group of words that relate to a shared area of meaning (e.g. needle, nurse and antibiotic could
be grouped within the semantic field of medicine)
Telescoping The contraction of a phrase, word or part of a word – like a telescope being closed (e.g.
biodegradable from biologically degradable)

Sentence and grammar

Term What it means
Active voice Where the subject of a verb is performing the action involved (e.g. She won the race)
Adjunct An optional or less-important part of a clause or sentence (e.g. on the floor in the sentence I
dropped the glass on the floor)
Aspect A form of the verb which explains its relation to time, particularly indicating whether an action is
completed (e.g. the perfect – had walked) or incomplete (e.g. as in the progressive – was walking
or perfect progressive – had been walking). Compare with Tense.
Clause Part of a sentence, containing (at least) a subject and a verb phrase
Coordination Connecting two or more independent clauses through the use of coordinating conjunctions
Declarative See Mood
Grammar Has a wide meaning, but generally relates to rules for the organisation of meaning in a language
Head word The main word in a phrase (e.g. the noun boy in the noun phrase the happy boy)

Cambridge International AS & A Level English Language 9093 – Glossary of terms 2

 Term What it means
Imperative See Mood
Interrogative See Mood
Modality The modality of an utterance refers to the attitude a speaker or writer takes to the idea being
expressed (e.g. certainty, possibility, obligation, ability). Modality is usually conveyed by the use of
the appropriate grammatical mood.
Mode The format through which ideas or content are communicated to an audience. Modes include
spoken (e.g. a conversation, a spontaneous speech), written (e.g. a novel, the text of a leaflet),
electronic (e.g. an email, a blog), and image (e.g. a photograph), and can be combined in a variety
of mixed modes (e.g. a prepared speech, a podcast).
Modification Adding words to a head word in order to give more detail, either before (premodification) or after
(postmodification)
Mood A grammatical feature through which a speaker or writer can express modality (i.e. an attitude
towards the content of an utterance), usually involving modal verbs such as can, ought or might.
Moods include the indicative/declarative (making a statement), the interrogative (asking a
question), the imperative (making a command), and the subjunctive (expressing wishes or
uncertainty).

Alternatively, ‘mood’ can also refer to the emotion or feelings evident in a text and the language
used to create these feelings.
Morpheme The smallest grammatical unit, from which larger ones can be formed (e.g. unwanted = un + want
+ ed)
Morphology The study of words and the various forms they take
Noun phrase A word (or group of words working together) which names a person, place or thing
Object In grammar, the object is the thing or person acted upon by the subject (e.g. the phrase the meal in
the sentence The girl ate the meal)
Parts of See Word classes
speech
Passive voice Where the subject receives the action of a verb (e.g. The ball was kicked)
Phrase A group of words that do not constitute a complete sentence
Prefix A group of letters, usually conveying a particular meaning, which are added to the front of a word
to give a new meaning (e.g. un-, pre-, and with-)
Sentence Generally, a set of words that is grammatically complete, consisting of a main clause and
sometimes one or more additional subordinate clauses
Subjunctive See Mood
Subordination Connecting two or more clauses, only one of which is independent
Suffix A group of letters, usually conveying a particular meaning, which are attached to the end of a word
to modify its meaning
Syllable A single unit of pronunciation, containing a single vowel sound, which may form part of all of a
word (e.g. rain has one syllable, while sunshine has two)
Syntax The way words are ordered in a sentence
Tense A grammatical feature (usually an inflection of a verb) that shows the relation in time between an
event or action and an utterance about it (e.g. We run is in the simple present tense, while We
were running is in the past progressive tense). Compare with Aspect.

Cambridge International AS & A Level English Language 9093 – Glossary of terms 3

 Term What it means
Word classes The grammatical groups into which words are divided. The basic word classes are noun, verb,
adjective, adverb, pronoun, preposition, interjection, conjunction, and determiners.
Each word class consists of a number of subclasses, such as proper nouns, transitive verbs,
predicative adjectives, adverbs of manner, possessive pronouns, spatial prepositions, volitive
interjections, subordinating conjunctions, and definite articles.
Also known as ‘parts of speech’.

Text and discourse

Term What it means

Analogy A comparison of two things which have some element of similarity. The similarity is often used to
help clarify an issue or idea.
Anaphoric Where a word refers back to an earlier part of a text for its meaning (e.g. in the following text, the
reference underlined words refer anaphorically to ‘David’: I recognised David immediately, even though I
had not seen him, my oldest friend, in years.)
Asynchronous Where the medium of communication causes a delay between utterance and response (e.g.
communication letter, email, online forum)
Audience The readers and/or listeners of a text
Cataphoric Where a word refers to a later part of a text for its meaning (e.g. in the following text, the
reference underlined words refer cataphorically to ‘Sarah’: Although I had not seen her in years, I
recognised my old friend Sarah immediately.)
Computer- The specialist form of language between online users
mediated
discourse
Deixis Language whose meaning is determined in part by contextual factors, such as who is using it,
when, where and to whom (e.g. this, that, now, you, tomorrow)
Dialectical A three-part argument, moving from thesis (an initial argument) to antithesis (the
structure counterargument) and finally to a synthesis that combines the two
Direct speech The use of the exact words spoken by a speaker/character
Discourse Any spoken or written language that is longer than a single sentence
Discourse Words or phrases which mark boundaries between one topic and another, where a writer or
markers speaker wishes to change the subject
Discursive A style in which facts and opinions are put forward and explored in order to develop an argument
Exophoric Where a word refers to something outside a text for its meaning, typically as a consequence of a
reference writer or speaker’s expectations as to the knowledge already possessed by the text’s intended
audience
First person Where a character in a story narrates the events that they are experiencing. Recognised by the
narrative use of I, we, us, our.
Foregrounding Using grammatical or syntactic devices to draw attention to a particular idea in a text
Form Generally, the specific type of whatever category is being considered (e.g. textual form, verb
form, grammatical form).
Used on its own, the word ‘form’ often refers to textual form. The division of texts into specific
forms (e.g. speech, dialogue, poem, novel, website) involves categorising texts according to how
their structural elements combine to create a unified and recognisable whole.
Different forms of text can usually be subdivided into genres (e.g. persuasive speech, romantic
novel, cooperative dialogue), depending on their content.
Formality The extent to which spoken or written texts either conform to standard conventions or employ
more personal language strategies

Cambridge International AS & A Level English Language 9093 – Glossary of terms 4

 Term What it means

Genre A subdivision of textual form determined by the text’s content (e.g. fantasy novel, tragic play,
ballad, online review, television commercial, formal report)
Implicature A meaning that is suggested by an utterance, rather than being explicitly stated or directly
entailed by the words used
In medias res Beginning a narrative in the middle of the events without any build-up or initial explanation
Inference The act of deducing implied meanings
Intertextuality Where a text produces additional meaning by referring in some way to another text
Irony When the intended meaning of a text or utterance differs radically from its literal interpretation
Metalanguage Language which is used to describe or comment on language (e.g. This translates as… or I
meant to say...)
Multimodal Consisting of more than one mode
Narrative The way in which a story is constructed
structure
Omniscient Where the narrator in a story knows all the thoughts, actions and feelings of the characters
narrator
Perspective Point of view
Pragmatics A branch of linguistics concerned with the ways in which meaning can alter according to the
context of utterance
Prose Ordinary language, without a rhyming pattern or rhythmic structure
Protagonist The main character in a literary work
Purpose A writer or speaker’s main aim when producing a text
Register The variety of language used in a particular situation, particularly with regard to levels of formality
Second person When the reader is addressed directly, typically through the use of you, your, yours, etc.
narrative
Simile A figure of speech which makes a comparison between two different things which have one point
of likeness, usually using the words like or as (e.g. she was as fast as lightning)
Slogan A short, direct and memorable phrase, frequently used in advertising
Structure The way in which a text is ordered and organised
Style The distinctive overall effect produced by interactions between form, structure and language
Third person Where the narrator of a story is not directly related to the events being narrated, and typically
narrative uses third-person pronouns (e.g. he, she, they) to refer to the characters involved
Tone The emotion or attitudes associated with a spoken or written utterance
Topic sentence A sentence which contains the essence of the entire paragraph. It is usually at the beginning of
the paragraph and signposts the pattern of information and ideas which follow.
Topic shift The point at which speakers move from one topic to another in conversation
Transactional Writing or speech which aims to complete a transaction and produce a particular outcome (e.g. a
letter claiming a refund; giving spoken directions to a destination)
Typography The visual aspect of written language, including the size, colour and type of font used

Cambridge International AS & A Level English Language 9093 – Glossary of terms 5