Midterm Study Guide: Language Concepts

Study Notes

The midterm exam will contain multiple-choice questions, some with two parts (A and B).
The format will be similar to previous "My Perspectives" tests.
This guide provides study preparation material.

Connotation: The emotional or cultural association of a word (e.g., positive or negative).
- Example: "childish" carries a negative connotation of immaturity.
Denotation: The literal dictionary definition of a word.
- Example: The denotation of "childish" is "like a child."

Compound subject: Contains more than one subject.
Compound predicate: Contains more than one action.
- Example: Minnie and Mickey Mouse ate the cake and drank the milk.

Coordinate adjectives:
- Can be arranged in different orders (comma or "and" used between them).
- Example: shiny, new car or shiny and new car
Cumulative adjectives:
- Must follow a specific order; changing the order sounds awkward.
- Example: big red barn

Dependent clause at the beginning: Followed by a comma.
- Example: While Mary played the piano, her Siberian Husky puppy howled.
Dependent clause at the end: Does not need a comma.
- Example: Her Siberian Husky puppy howled while Mary played the piano.

Thesaurus: Finds synonyms and antonyms.
Dictionary: Provides definitions, parts of speech, and multiple meanings of words.
Prefixes and suffixes: Common prefixes (DYS-, MAL-, IR-, PRE-) and suffixes (-ION, -MENT).

Stage directions describe actions, movements, emotions, and setting of characters in a play.
They are typically written in parentheses in the play text and separate from the dialogue.
They are used to visualize setting, character actions, mood, or other visual elements.
Stage directions help actors and directors perform without spoken dialogue.
- Example: "Enter right" (character enters from the right side of the stage).
- "Looks nervously around" (describes a character's emotional state and body language).
- "A dimly lit living room" (describes the setting of a scene).

Be familiar with identifying themes and recognizing types of figurative language (metaphors, similes, personification).

Review past tests for common question formats.
Practice identifying connotation and denotation in sentences.
Write examples of coordinate and cumulative adjectives.
Use a thesaurus and dictionary to improve understanding of prefixes and suffixes.