Hello y'all! Sorry for the delay. This week was super busy. Anyway, let's get started!

Dictation is all about ✨wordplay✨ and how you say/narrate things. 

Connotation: The feeling you get from the word. Not necessarily its literal meaning. Ex: Cheap (implies stingy/not made well) or 'she was feeling blue' (she wasn't literally blue. She was sad). I remember this by thinking of connotation, like how you say certain words can make them sound like a pro or a con.

Denotation: The literal definition of a word. Ex: The blueberry is blue (the blueberry is literally blue). I remember the difference between connotation and denotation because Denotation and Dictionary both start with a D.

Euphemism: In simple terms, sugarcoating a statement. It softens the blow and makes it less sad/more professional. Ex: Jim passed away instead of Jim died. Jack was let go instead of Jack was fired.

Hyperbole: An extreme exaggeration to emphasize a situation/emotion. Ex: I'm going to die of embarrassment. These books weigh a ton.

Juxtaposition: I learned about this one a couple weeks ago and I've been finding it everywhere. I love this one so much. Juxtaposition is contrasting two items, people, concepts, etc by placing them next to each other. It brings out their differences. Ex: "All's fair in love and war" or the tranquil, peaceful sunset and a raging volcano

Litote: Please stop autocorrecting to littles- Litotes are often used as an understatement. It's basically using negative words for a positive meaning. Ex: Not bad. You won't regret it. 

Mood: The feeling the author wants to convey/the reader gets upon writing/reading the story. It allows connection to the plot, characters, and story. Short stories often give off one emotion due to their length, while longer stories will have overall moods with specific sections of different emotions.

Tone: The feeling a piece of literature gives off. It's the atmosphere of a novel. It's really similar to mood, and kind of hard to differentiate (at least for me) because the rules of each are gray instead of black and white, but I'll try to explain it. How I see it (and I could be wrong) is that mood is emotion while tone is inflection. Ex (for tone): I'll be there around four! is different from "I will be there at four in the afternoon." 

Byeeeee!