Vocabulaire Avancé pour le TOEFL - Langues et Grammaire

the study of the origins and historical developments of words and their meanings

étymologie

the science and study of speech sounds and their production

phonétique

the study of the evolution and structure of language in general or of certain languages

linguistique

(in the grammar of some languages) a group of nouns, pronouns, or adjectives changing in the same way to indicate case, number, and gender

déclinaison

(grammar) to show how a verb changes depending on number, person, tense, etc.

conjuguer

(grammar) a class of words indicating whether they are feminine, masculine, or neuter

genre

(grammar) related to verbs that express wishes, possibility, or doubt

subjonctif

(grammar) a letter or a set of letters that are added to the beginning of a word to alter its meaning and make a new word

préfixe

(grammar) a letter or a set of letters that are added to the end of a word to alter its meaning and make a new word

suffixe

(grammar) connected with or functioning as an adjective

adjectif

connected with or functioning as an adverb

adverbial

words, phrases, and expressions used by a specific group or profession, which are incomprehensible to others

jargon

the use of words that convey the opposite meaning as a way to annoy someone or for creating a humorous effect

sarcasme, raillerie

a statement that implies or indirectly mentions something or someone else, especially as a literary device

allusion

a comparison between two different things, done to explain the similarities between them

analogie

the use of the same letter or sound at the beginning of the words in a verse or sentence, used as a literary device

allitération

to pronounce or utter something in a clear and precise way

bien s'exprimer, exprimer

conveying or expressing a positive reply

affirmatif

a word or expression that is used instead of a harsh or insulting one in order to be more tactful and polite

euphémisme

a form of humor in which the words that someone says mean the opposite, producing an emphatic effect

ironie

a logically contradictory statement that might actually be true

paradoxe

a technique used in speech and writing to exaggerate the extent of something

hyperbole

a clever or amusing use of words that takes advantage of the multiple meanings or interpretations that it has

jeu de mots, calembour

connected with the art of writing or speaking in an effective or persuasive way

rhétorique

humor, irony, ridicule, or sarcasm used to expose or criticize the faults and shortcomings of a person, government, etc.

satire

the redundant repetition of an idea using different words in a sentence or phrase

tautologie

(linguistics) the speech pattern that an individual uses at a particular period of life

idiolecte

the symbol * used in writing or printing to show that there is more information about something in the footnote or as an indication of importance or omission

astérisque

to use punctuation marks in a text in order to make it more understandable

ponctuer

the smallest unit of sound in a language that can distinguish meaning, often represented by a specific symbol in phonetic notation

phonème

(linguistics) a branch of linguistics that deals with meaning, reference, or truth

sémantique

(linguistics) the way in which words and phrases are arranged to form grammatical sentences in a language

syntaxe

(grammar) a group of verb forms that indicate if the action or state is conceived as a statement, question, command or in another way

mode

(linguistics) all the words and phrases of a language, including the function words

vocabulaire

the complete set of meaningful units in a language or a branch of knowledge, or words or phrases that a speaker uses

annales, lexique

(grammar) one of two or more words with the same pronunciation that differ in meaning, spelling or origin

homophone

each of two or more words with the same spelling or pronunciation that vary in meaning and origin

homonyme