speech teacher resources - houston county school … chapter 11.pdfusing the wrong word or using...

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Copyright © by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. CHAPTER 11, Effective Language1

CHAPTER 11

Continued on next page.

Speech Vocabulary

DIRECTIONS: Write the appropriate word or phrase from the list in the blanks below.

irony understatement consonance imageryhyperbole abstract words antithesis repetitionslang parallelism euphemisms metaphorconcrete words allusion connotation alliterationoxymoron denotation assonance similejargon personifi cation

1. name things that we can perceive through sight,

hearing, touch, taste, or smell.

2. are names for qualities, attributes, and concepts.

3. refers to the dictionary meaning for the word.

4. refers to the meaning of a word that goes beyond the

dictionary defi nition to associations we make with the word.

5. is language that creates pictures in our minds and

excites our senses.

6. An is a reference to a well-known person, place, thing,

or idea.

7. is the specific balancing or contrasting of one term

against another.

8. An places words in opposition directly side by side.

9. uses words implying the opposite of what they seem to

say on the surface.

10. is overstatement for the sake of emphasis.

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CHAPTER 11, Effective Language Copyright © by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. 2

11. makes less of something than it really is.

12. gives human characteristics to nonhuman things.

13. is the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginnings

of two or more words that are close together.

14. is the repetition of vowel sounds.

15. is the repetition of consonant sounds anywhere in words.

16. means using the same grammatical form to express

ideas that should be treated equally.

17. refers to the specialized vocabulary of those in the

same line of work.

18. refers to nonstandard words that may be associated

with certain groups, such as teenagers.

19. compares unlike things without using like or as.

20. compares with the use of like or as.

21. is the act or process of repeating.

22. are words we substitute for words that are harsh or

distasteful.

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CHAPTER 11

Academic Vocabulary

DIRECTIONS: In the blank, write the letter of the definition for each term.

_____ 1. tangible a. ethics; morals

_____ 2. compression b. overstate; amplify

_____ 3. crystallize c. humiliating; shameful

_____ 4. conscience d. reduction; abridgment

_____ 5. exaggerate e. a system of raised printing for the blind

_____ 6. emancipation f. attractive; charming

_____ 7. Braille g. concrete; touchable

_____ 8. picturesque h. rhythm; beat

_____ 9. demeaning i. the quality of spreading throughout

_____ 10. cadence j. freedom; liberation

_____ 11. pervasiveness k. to make extremely clear

DIRECTIONS: In each blank write an appropriate vocabulary word from the list above.

12. The speaker’s rhythmic use of language gave his speech a mesmerizing

.

13. A summary can a speaker’s remarks.

14. A metaphor gives language a quality.

15. Because the speaker had not analyzed the audience, many found his remarks

.

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CHAPTER 11


DIRECTIONS: In the blank, write T if the statement is true and F if the statement is false.

_____ 1. There is a world of difference between the word or phrase that will say exactly what you mean and the word or phrase that is “in the ballpark.”

_____ 2. Using the wrong word or using unclear phrasing can lead to confusing, embarrassing communication.

_____ 3. Studies show that 50% of all communication is not written but spoken.

_____ 4. Certain language is appropriate in some situations but not in others.

_____ 5. Concrete words are more open to interpretation than abstract words.

_____ 6. Abstract words can be powerful enough to inspire us and appeal to our emotions.

_____ 7. The term economy applies only to your writing.

_____ 8. Transitions help the audience follow your speech.

_____ 9. Using figures of speech effectively will make your speeches more descriptive.

_____ 10. It is all right to use an allusion your audience won’t recognize.

_____ 11. Irony works best when your delivery works with your words.

_____ 12. You can exaggerate to the point that no one believes or trusts you.

_____ 13. Good speakers should strive to use euphemisms.

_____ 14. Sexist language groups men and women into stereotyped categories.

_____ 15. Obscene language is language that offends by going against standards of decency.

DIRECTIONS: Write the appropriate word or phrase in the blank.

16. You can see the , not the spoken, word as often as you

like.

Things to Remember

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17. The word language comes from the Latin word lingua, which means

.

18. With the word, you rarely have a

to make an impact on your audience.

19. A good speaker is in the number of words selected for

the speech.

20. The average person has a vocabulary of approximately

words.

21. words are tangible and paint a picture.

22. It is desirable to use words that clearly a certain meaning.

23. words may have many different interpretations.

24. One effective way to be simple and direct is to ask

questions.

25. We classify fi gures of speech in terms of three working categories:

, , and

.

26. involves showing similarities.

27. To use means to show similarities through the use of

picturesque language.

28. , , and

are the three most common forms of comparison

imagery.

29. is the general term used to describe language that sets

up opposition for effect.

30. Contrast imagery often takes the form of ,

, or .

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31. To is to make something greater than it is.

32. Three types of exaggeration imagery are ,

, and .

33. Overstatement is called .

34. We can repeat individual sounds in three ways: through ,

, and .

35. Three language areas you should avoid are ,

, and .

DIRECTIONS: In the blank write the letter which matches the quotation or idea with the person responsible.

_____ 36. Mark Twain

_____ 37. Christopher Fry

_____ 38. Henry David Thoreau

_____ 39. Richard Nixon

_____ 40. William Butler Yeats

_____ 41. John F. Kennedy

_____ 42. Helen Keller

a. “I know that you believe that you understand what you think I said, but I’m not sure that you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.”

b. “Think like a wise man, but communicate in the language of the people.”

c. She said that she would choose to hear if she had to choose between hearing and seeing.

d. “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.”

e. “The pleasure and excitement of words is that they are living and generating things.”

f. He said that the difference between the right word and the almost-right word is the difference between lightning and the lightning bug.

g. “Simplify, simplify.”


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CHAPTER 11

DIRECTIONS: Write responses to the following.

1. Give three language structures you can avoid to make your language more economical.

2. Discuss the importance of imagery and/or concrete language in speeches.

3. What are the advantages and disadvantages of abstract words?

Important Concepts

CHAPTER 11

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DIRECTIONS: Rewrite the following sentences so that they are clear.

1. Having a dining room and a utility room, the buyer told the real estate agent she liked the house.

2. Those dancers are tiny dancers made of porcelain.

3. The department store is well-stocked with merchandise, location, and clerks.

4. Peanuts were all over the carpet that they had spilled.

5. The new budget plan was discussed by the financial officer which has more spending for printing.

6. The financial officer that was describing the new budget plan has money for training and money for more staff.

Clearing Up Confusion


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DIRECTIONS: The words listed below have the denotations given in the “Meaning” column. Below each, list others that mean the same or about the same but with different connotations.

Under “Meaning,” explain the connotation of each term you list. The first one is done for you.

Word Meaning

tree a plant having a woody covering and usually branches

willow connotes sadness or weeping

oak connotes sturdiness or dependability

overweight excessive in weight

clean without dirt

illusion an unreal perception

woman a person of the female sex

man a person of the male sex

child a young person

Varying Connotations

CHAPTER 11

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DIRECTIONS: On the lines beneath each pair of sentences, explain how the meaning of each sentence changes when the boldfaced term changes.

1. The salary increase was important.

The salary increase was vital.

2. The newspaperman implied that the troops had won the battle.

The newspaperman reported that the troops had won the battle.

3. The elderly woman had an inquiring mind.

The elderly woman had a prying mind.

4. The fashion model, like all fashion models, was slender.

The fashion model, like all fashion models, was scrawny.

5. The cat was clever.

The cat was crafty.

Changing Meaning by Changing Words


CHAPTER 11

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DIRECTIONS: Rewrite each sentence on the lines provided so that it is more economical.

1. In the heavy, wet rainstorm we could hardly see the road ahead of us.

2. Give the mixture a good stir before you pour the batter into the cake pan.

3. The cheerleaders chose Charla as the captain of the cheerleading squad.

4. The reason he acted the way he did was that he did not like to be told what to do.

5. The man who is the lecturer for today’s lesson is at the front of the room on the stage.

6. The tape is here for the purpose of taping the pink paper to the orange paper.

Economy of Language

CHAPTER 11

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DIRECTIONS: On the lines below write as many concrete images of FEAR as you can. Each image should paint a “word picture” of fear. “Rabid dog,” for example, paints a picture of fear.

DIRECTIONS: Develop your images into an attention-getter for an introduction to a speech on how to overcome fear.

Using Imagery


CHAPTER 11

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DIRECTIONS: Write a metaphor that will capture the essence of the abstract words below. The first one is done for you.

1. ridicule

Ridicule is a whip lashing about trying to find a target.

2. loneliness

3. giddiness

4. evil

5. corruption

DIRECTIONS: Finish each sentence with a simile that paints a word picture.

1. He danced…

He danced like a ribbon whipping wildly in the wind.

2. Winter has come…

3. The willow drooped…

4. The sun hung in the sky…

Similes and Metaphors

CHAPTER 11

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Allusions

DIRECTIONS: On the lines provided, identify the allusion in each sentence and explain its contribution to the meaning of the sentence.

1. The three bicyclists might as well have been riding the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria.

Allusion:

Meaning:

2. Would his toes smell sweet by any other name?

Allusion:

Meaning:

3. He was the Gatsby of the 2000s jet set.

Allusion:

Meaning:

4. His finally earning a college degree made winning the Triple Crown look like child’s play.

Allusion:

Meaning:

5. He’s such a chauvinist he’s yelling “Stella!” on his way out of the meat market.

Allusion:

Meaning:

6. They make “ordinary people” look happy.

Allusion:

Meaning:


CHAPTER 11

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Antithesis and Oxymoron

DIRECTIONS: Finish the following paragraph so that each pair of sentences will contain antithesis. When finished, the paragraph could become a segment of a speech on political corruption.

Politics is not the best of professions; .

It is not the calmest of trades; . One

does not look to a politician expecting the highest of morals; .

One does not even hope for intelligence; .

In short, when it comes to politics one does not hope for sanity;

.

DIRECTIONS: Now write a segment containing at least three pairs of sentences containing antithesis for a speech that you would like to prepare.

DIRECTIONS: Write an oxymoron and explain its meaning. An example is provided.

1. Oxymoron: There is no such thing as “military intelligence.”

Meaning: The military, even the branch called military intelligence, is not intelligent.

2. Oxymoron:

Meaning:

CHAPTER 11

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DIRECTIONS: Write an ironic response to each of the following situations. Practice delivering the response to communicate that you mean the opposite of what you say. An example is provided.

1. You have just had the best news of your life.

Ironic response: “Oh, it’s not that big a deal.”

2. You are so angry you are about to boil over.

Ironic response:

3. You are very upset with yourself about losing a race.

Ironic response:

4. You just “aced” a test.

Ironic response:

5. You are dreading going to a class you dislike.

Ironic response:

DIRECTIONS: Write an ironic ending for each of the following to make a complete sentence.

1. An Olympic swimmer returns home after winning the gold medal, only to drown in the

bathtub.

2. A Wall Street wizard .

3. A senile old man thought not to be “worth” much anymore

.

4. A professional ice skater .

5. A tobacco company executive .

Irony


CHAPTER 11

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DIRECTIONS: Write four headlines that contain alliteration.

1.

2.

3.

4.

DIRECTIONS: On the lines below, write three lines from advertisements that contain consonance.

1.

2.

3.

DIRECTIONS: On the lines below, write three popular quotations, proverbs, sayings, or maxims that contain assonance.

1.

2.

3.

DIRECTIONS: Read some editorials in a newspaper or magazine. Find three examples of parallel structure.

1.

2.

3.

Repetition

CHAPTER 11

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Euphemism

DIRECTIONS: Write a euphemism for each term below. Then rewrite the paragraph, changing its meaning by substituting the euphemisms for the original terms.

janitor: shoot-out:

gangs: death:

guns: stabbed:

police: knife:

mortally wounded: blood:

garbage cans: trash:

armed security guard: metal detector:

violence: ambulance:

The janitor walked down the graffi ti-covered halls. Moments ago rival gangs had taken guns from their lockers. Only the arrival of police had prevented a shoot-out that might have resulted in hundreds of deaths. As it was, one student had stabbed another with a knife he took from a back pocket. Hundreds of stunned students had watched in deathly silence as the ambulance carried the mortally wounded student away. In the hall, a pool of blood still lay beside garbage cans piled high with trash. Now the janitor walked toward the armed security guard on duty at the building’s entrance where a metal detector had recently been installed. Would the violence ever end?

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CHAPTER 11

Hyperbole and Understatement

DIRECTIONS: Change each statement into one that uses hyperbole.

1. Crime is a problem in America.

2. I don’t like to study.

3. That restaurant serves bad food.

4. I get scared when I give speeches.

5. We need to meet our quota.

DIRECTIONS: Now rewrite each exaggerated statement above to contain understatement instead of hyperbole.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

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CHAPTER 11


Avoiding Sexist Language

DIRECTIONS: Rewrite the following paragraph so that it does not contain sexist language. The first sentence is done for you as an example.

Man has come a long way in his quest for creature comforts. He no longer has to catch his breakfast and his dinner. He only has to walk into a supermarket to buy his food. He does not have to walk to school through six feet of snow or to work through six feet of mud. He only has to ride a bus or car on a concrete highway. Man no longer has to fear for his life in a lawless land. Policemen and patrolmen guard the streets day and night, freeing him to become chairman of the board in a high rise built by highly paid journeymen. He can go home at night to his wife and children and surround himself with microwaves, televisions, compact disc players, and baseboard heating.

People have come a long way in their quest for creature comforts.

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CHAPTER 11

Jargon and Slang

DIRECTIONS: Interview a policy debater from your school or another school to get a translation of the following passage. Write a jargon-free version of the passage on the lines provided.

When the judge said it was time to start, I reached for the 1AC, only to realize that it wasn’t in the ox box. Sometimes I misfile it after the 2AR, so I quickly checked the T file and the Malthus file, both of which we had used in the last aff debate. No luck. The 2AC looked as panicked as I did as he leaned over, disad and sig extensions in hand, to say, “I think we left it in gov doc’s when we were writing blocks before the first power match. We’ll just have to throw a new aff together off the extension blocks.”

“No way, man,” I answered. “I can’t just throw together solvency and inherency. The ev in the 1AC was all we had. We’ll have to run climate.”

DIRECTIONS: Write a short dialogue between two teenagers using so much slang that someone not “in the know” would have a hard time understanding the conversation.


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CHAPTER Test11

DIRECTIONS: Fill in the blank with the appropriate word or phrase.

1. Studies show that over percent of all communication is

not written but spoken.

2. words, unlike

words, which deal with ideas and concepts open to interpretation, name things that can be

seen and touched.

3. While refers to a word’s dictionary definition,

refers to the other meanings we associate with it.

4. Language that creates pictures in our minds and excites our senses is called

.

5. A is a comparison using like or as, while a

is a comparison not using like or as.

6. An is the extended use of a comparison.

7. is the balancing or contrasting of one term against

another.

8. “She is the momentary love of my life” is an example of .

9. If an Olympic swimmer drowns in the bathtub, the end of her life is

.

10. is a method of saying more than what is true for the

sake of emphasis.

11. is the opposite, or antonym, of hyperbole.

12. allows listeners to visualize in human terms.

13. “Dull, dark, and dreary” is an example of .

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14. “Oppressed people” is an example of .

15. “Oozing oil” is an example of .

DIRECTIONS: In the blank to the left, write T if the statement is true and F if the statement is false.

_____ 16. Abstract words should be used with care because they have many connotations.

_____ 17. A good speaker does not worry about economy of language.

_____ 18. Rhetorical questions tend to confuse and complicate your message.

_____ 19. The most effective allusions will be recognized by the audience.

_____ 20. Euphemisms often avoid the truth, lack clarity, and are more evasive than helpful.

_____ 21. The music of words combined with their imagery can make communication more effective.

_____ 22. Most of the music of language is derived from some sort of repetition.

_____ 23. Jargon and slang make communication with people outside your group much easier.

_____ 24. Few are making an attempt to rid language of sexist words and phrasing.

_____ 25. You should experiment with using obscene language for shock value.

DIRECTIONS: Write responses to the following.

26. List and provide examples of the three common forms of comparison.

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27. List and provide examples of the three types of contrast imagery.

28. List and provide examples of the three types of exaggeration imagery.

29. Provide examples of the four types of repetition, naming each by its type.

30. What language types should you avoid and why should you avoid them?

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