Literary Terms

By: Kristin McCasland

Main Idea The main idea of a story is a statement that reflects the total message, or gist.

Example:There are a lot of different breeds of dogs in the world. Golden Retrievers,

Beagles, and Dalmatians are just a few.

The main idea was breeds of dogs

First Person

A Point of view that includes the author and uses the word “I”.

Example:I went to the store to buy

groceries.

MoodThe mood is how the writing makes you

feel.

Example:The sun was shining and it was

warm outside. It was a perfect day.

The mood was happy

Multiple-Meaning WordMultiple-meaning words are words that

mean the same thing.

Example:• She planned a trip to Florida.• Be careful, or you will trip.

Simile

A simile is a comparison between two things using “like” or “as”

Example:He was as angry as a wet hen.

Metaphor

A metaphor is a comparison that doesn’t use “like” or “as”.

Example:We could have had more pizza if Bob wasn’t such a

hog.

CharacterA character is the person or animal around which the action in the story

occurs. I’m a

character from

Peanuts!

Dialogue

Dialogue is the conversation between two characters.

Hi! I’m Sally

Hi Sally. I'm Bill

Author’s Purpose

The author’s purpose is the reason the author wrote the story.

There are three types of author’s purposes. You can remember them by PIE. PersuadeInformEntertain

ExampleYou should play a sport. They keep you active and healthy.

The author’s purpose was to persuade.