Complete Glossary of 6th Grade ELA Terms: Sixth Grade English Reference
This comprehensive alphabetical glossary provides formal definitions, morphological breakdowns, and mentor examples for foundational English Language Arts terminology.
Master Alphabetical Glossary of Terms
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| 6TH GRADE ELA MASTER GLOSSARY |
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| Term | Formal Academic Definition |
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| Abstract Noun | A noun that names an intangible idea, quality, or |
| | mental condition that cannot be perceived by senses. |
| | Example: *courage, justice, integrity*. |
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| Active Voice | A sentence construction where the grammatical subject|
| | performs the action of the verb. |
| | Example: *The hawk seized the field mouse.* |
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| Adage | A traditional, time-honored saying expressing a |
| | common observation about human nature or life. |
| | Example: *A rolling stone gathers no moss.* |
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| Alliteration | The repetition of initial consonant sounds in a |
| | sequence of closely adjacent words. |
| | Example: *The wild wind whistled through willows.* |
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| Allusion | A brief, indirect reference to a well-known person, |
| | historical event, myth, or literary masterpiece. |
| | Example: *His new task was a Herculean challenge.* |
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| Analogy | A formal comparison showing the logical relationship |
| | between two pairs of words or concepts. |
| | Example: *surgeon : scalpel :: sculptor : chisel.* |
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| Antecedent | The specific noun or noun phrase to which a pronoun |
| | refers. Example: *When [Maya] ran, [she] slipped.* |
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| Central Idea | The primary overarching claim, insight, or thesis |
| | that an author develops in an informational text. |
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| Claim | A debatable, defensible assertion that forms the |
| | foundational core of an academic argument. |
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| Climax | The decisive turning point, highest point of tension,|
| | or emotional peak in a narrative plot arc. |
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| Collective Noun | A noun naming a group of individuals, animals, or |
| | objects treated as a singular unit. |
| | Example: *committee, flock, archipelago, jury.* |
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| Comma Splice | The grammatical mechanical error of joining two |
| | independent clauses with only a comma. |
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| Complex Sentence | A sentence consisting of exactly one independent |
| | clause and at least one dependent subordinate clause.|
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| Compound Sentence | A sentence containing two or more independent clauses|
| | joined by a comma and FANBOYS or a semicolon. |
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| Connotation | The emotional, cultural, and psychological |
| | associations evoked by a word beyond its definition. |
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| Counterclaim | An opposing argument or challenge to a central claim |
| | that a writer must acknowledge and refute. |
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| Denotation | The literal, objective dictionary definition of a |
| | word, stripped of all emotional associations. |
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| Dependent Clause | A clause containing a subject and verb that cannot |
| | stand alone because it begins with a subordinator. |
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| Direct Object | A noun or pronoun that directly receives the action |
| | of a transitive action verb. |
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| Dynamic Character | A literary character who undergoes profound, |
| | permanent internal growth or moral change over time. |
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| Ethos | A rhetorical appeal to authority, credibility, and |
| | ethical trustworthiness of the author or speaker. |
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| Extended Metaphor | A sustained comparison between two unlike entities |
| | developed across multiple lines, stanzas, or essays. |
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| Hyperbole | An intentional, extravagant exaggeration used for |
| | dramatic emphasis, heightened emotion, or comedy. |
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| Idiom | An established figurative expression whose meaning |
| | cannot be deduced from literal words. |
| | Example: *bite the bullet, under the weather.* |
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| Independent Clause| A clause containing a subject and predicate that |
| | expresses a complete thought and can stand alone. |
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| Inference | A logical deduction formed by synthesizing textual |
| | evidence with background knowledge and reasoning. |
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| Intensive Pronoun | A self-pronoun used solely for rhetorical emphasis |
| | that can be removed without altering the sentence. |
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| Irony (Verbal) | A contradiction where a speaker says one thing but |
| | means the exact opposite for rhetorical effect. |
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| Linking Verb | A verb connecting the subject to a subject complement|
| | rather than expressing action. Example: *is, seemed* |
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| Metaphor | A figurative comparison directly asserting that one |
| | thing IS another without using "like" or "as." |
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| Monologue | A long, uninterrupted speech delivered by a single |
| | character to other characters on stage. |
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| Mood | The atmospheric emotional feeling or climate that a |
| | text evokes within the mind of the reader. |
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| Nonrestrictive | A descriptive clause or phrase that provides extra, |
| Element | non-essential information and is set off by commas. |
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| Onomatopoeia | A word whose phonetic pronunciation imitates the |
| | acoustic sound it describes. Example: *hiss, clang.* |
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| Oxford Comma | The serial comma placed immediately before the |
| | coordinating conjunction in a list of three or more. |
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| Personification | A literary device attributing human emotions, traits,|
| | or actions to inanimate objects or animals. |
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| Point of View | The narrative perspective through which a story is |
| | narrated (1st, 2nd, 3rd limited, 3rd omniscient). |
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| Primary Source | An original, firsthand artifact or document created |
| | during the specific historical era under study. |
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| Rebuttal | The logical counter-evidence and reasoning deployed |
| | to disprove or neutralize an opponent's counterclaim.|
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| Reflexive Pronoun | A self-pronoun referring back to the subject that is |
| | an essential grammatical direct or indirect object. |
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| Restrictive | An essential descriptive clause or phrase that limits|
| Element | meaning and takes zero commas. |
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| Run-On Sentence | An error where two or more independent clauses are |
| | fused together with improper or missing punctuation. |
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| Secondary Source | An account created after the fact by a researcher |
| | synthesizing and interpreting primary sources. |
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| Semicolon | A punctuation mark linking closely related |
| | independent clauses without a coordinating conj. |
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| Simile | A figurative comparison comparing two unlike entities|
| | using the comparative words "like" or "as." |
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| Soliloquy | A dramatic speech delivered by a solitary actor alone|
| | on stage revealing private thoughts to the audience. |
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| Static Character | A literary character who remains essentially |
| | unchanged throughout the course of a narrative. |
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| Subordinating | A conjunction that introduces a dependent adverb |
| Conjunction | clause. Example: *because, although, since, while.* |
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| Symbolism | A literary device where a concrete object or person |
| | represents a profound abstract concept or truth. |
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| Theme | The universal truth, insight, or moral realization |
| | about life developed across a literary work. |
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| Thesis Statement | The single declarative sentence stating the central |
| | claim and supporting reasons of an academic essay. |
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| Tone | The author's or speaker's attitude toward the subject|
| | conveyed through diction, syntax, and voice. |
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| Transitive Verb | An action verb that transfers its action directly |
| | across to a direct object noun or pronoun. |
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| Warrant | The underlying assumption or logical principle that |
| | connects empirical evidence to an argumentative claim|
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Exercises and Solutions
Exercise 1: Vocabulary Cross-Referencing. In a cohesive paragraph, select three related terms from the glossary (e.g., Claim, Counterclaim, and Rebuttal) and explain how they interact dynamically within a formal argumentative research paper.
Solution 1: Within the architecture of a formal argumentative research paper, the claim, the counterclaim, and the rebuttal operate as a dynamic triad of logical persuasion. The claim establishes the central debatable thesis statement that the author sets out to defend using empirical evidence and sound reasons. As the argument unfolds, an intellectually rigorous writer does not ignore opposition, but introduces the counterclaim—the strongest opposing perspective that challenges the author's original claim. Finally, the author deploys the rebuttal, delivering superior factual data and logical reasoning that directly disproves, minimizes, or answers the counterclaim, thereby restoring and reinforcing the authority of the original claim. This recursive cycle of assertion, challenge, and defense proves to the reader that the author's final verdict was reached through fair-minded, exhaustive scholarly evaluation.
Exercise 2: Distinguishing Grammatical Twins. In a single paragraph, use the glossary definitions to contrast the exact mechanical differences between an "Independent Clause" and a "Dependent Clause," and between an "Intensive Pronoun" and a "Reflexive Pronoun."
Solution 2: According to the glossary, an independent clause and a dependent clause both contain a subject and a verb; however, an independent clause expresses a complete freestanding thought that can stand alone as a simple sentence, whereas a dependent clause begins with a subordinating word that suspends completion, rendering it an incomplete thought that must attach to an independent clause. Similarly, intensive and reflexive pronouns share identical physical spellings (the "-self" and "-selves" forms), but perform opposite grammatical duties: a reflexive pronoun is an indispensable structural object that reflects the action back to the subject (and cannot be removed without shattering the sentence), whereas an intensive pronoun functions purely as an optional stylistic intensifier that provides rhetorical emphasis and can be deleted without damaging the sentence's grammatical integrity.