Listening and Speaking
Glossary

Allusion: Reference to something, often to explain or demonstrate a point

Analogy: Describing an unfamiliar concept by comparing it to a familiar one

Anecdote: A brief story that demonstrates a point

Antithesis: The opposite of a specific idea

Audience: The person or people who receive a message

Body language: What your posture, gestures, and movements tell the audience

Cadence: The rhythm or flow of a speech

Coherence: The quality of ideas that hold together and make sense

Communication situation: The sender, message, medium, receiver, and context of communication

Conciseness: Packing the most meaning into the fewest words

Context: The time and place in which a message is created or received

Definition: The meaning of a word or idea, often with examples

Demonstration: Showing how to do something or how something works

Diction: Level of language; see formality

Emphasis: Imparting special attention or stress on specific words or phrases

Energy: Engagement of the speaker, connecting to the audience and topic

Enunciation: The clear pronunciation of words and phrases

Exposition: A speech that informs, explaining something to the audience

Facial expression: What your facial features tell the audience

Filters: The way in which a sender codes a message and a receiver decodes a message

Formality: The level of language (or diction), from informal to formal

Gesture: Motion used to emphasize a point

Hyperbole: Exaggeration; overstatement

Inflection: The rise and fall in the pitch of a voice

Irony: When an action intended to have one consequence has the opposite

Message: The main point and supporting details, provided for a purpose

Metaphor: Comparing two things by equating them

Monotone: One tone—a dull voice that shows no interest

Narration: A speech that tells a story

Overstatement: Exaggerated language, usually for comedic effect

Pace: The speed or movement in a speech

Personification: Ascribing human traits to something not human

Persuasion: A speech meant to convince listeners of something

Pitch: The high, middle, or low tones of a voice

Projection: Speaking loudly and clearly

Prop: An object used to demonstrate a point

Purpose: The reason for communicating—to inform, persuade, entertain

Receiver: The person who gets the message from the sender

Sarcasm: Saying the opposite of what you mean

Script: The written copy of a speech

Sender: The creator of the message

Simile: Comparing two things using like or as

Slide show: A series of visuals projected onto a screen to help viewers follow along with the presentation

Soliloquy: A solo speech given by a single character in a play

Stage fright: The nervousness a speaker feels before and during a speech

Theme: A general concept or statement about life

Thesis: The main point of a specific message

Tone: The feeling or attitude the speaker has toward the topic

Understatement: Using minimal language for something huge, usually for comedic effect

Visuals: Elements such as a slide show, a picture, or a prop that makes a point visually