| absolute criteria | Standards for selecting alternatives that must be met, giving the group no leeway.
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| abstract words | Words that are general, broad, and distant from what you can perceive through your senses.
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| abstraction | A simplification standing for a person or thing.
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| action ending function | The third function of a conclusion, to state the response you seek from the audience.
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| addition | An articulation problem that occurs when an extra sound is added.
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| affection | Humans need to love and be loved, to know that we are important to others who value us as unique human beings.
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| alliteration | The repetition of an initial consonant, a repeated sound.
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| analogy | A comparison of things in some respects, especially in position or function, that are otherwise dissimilar.
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| antonyms | A word or words that are the opposite in meaning from another word.
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| argument | The extent to which the presenter furnishes reasons for the message claims.
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| articulation | The physiological process of creating the sounds of a word.
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| audience adaptation | Making the message appropriate for the particular audience by using analysis and applying its results to message creation.
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| audience analysis | (1) Discovering as much as possible about an audience to improve communication with them. (2) Learning enough about listeners to be able to predict their probable response to your message in a public speaking situation.
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| audience participation | The speaker makes the audience active participants in the presentation.
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| bar/column chart | A visual aid used to illustrate quantitative differences between categories of information.
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| behavioral response | An objective of a presentation to inform that is met when the audience shows an overt indication of under- standing through action.
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| bibliographic references | Complete citations that appear in the "references" or "works cited" section of your speech outline.
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| bibliography | A list of the sources consulted and the sources actually used in the presentation.
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| boomerang effect | A phenomenon in which the audience likes the presenter and the proposal on the issue less after the presentation than they did before it.
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| brainstorming | (1) Generating as many ideas for topics as you can in a limited period of time without pausing to evaluate them for quality. (2) A creative procedure for generating ideas and potential solutions to problems.
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| brake light function | Warns the audience that you are about to stop.
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| categorical brainstorming | Approaching the brainstorming process by beginning with categories that prompt you to think of topics.
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| cause-effect pattern | An organizational arrangement in which part of the speech describes or explains causes and consequences.
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| celebrity testimony | Statements made by a public figure who is known to the audience.
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| channel | The means of distributing your words, whether by coaxial cable, fiber optics, microwave, radio, video, or air.
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| chart | A visual aid used to visually display quantitative or statistical information.
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| claim | A conclusion of what the persuader would have the listener believe or do that invites proof or evidence.
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| closed-ended questions | Questions that force a decision by inviting only a yes or no response or a brief answer.
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| co-culture | A group of people whose beliefs or behaviors distinguish it from the larger culture of which it is a part and with which it shares many similarities.
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| commemorative address | Designed to set a tone for an event—much like a welcome speech—and usually considered the primary, or keynote, presentation for the event.
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| common ground | Features you share with your audience.
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| communication | A transaction in which speaker and listener simultaneously send, receive, and interpret messages.
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| communication apprehension | An individual's level of fear or anxiety associated with either real or anticipated communication with another person or persons.
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| comparison | Shows how much one thing is like another by highlighting similarities.
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| competence | A thorough familiarity with your topic.
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| complete arguments | Include all parts of the argument—claims and supporting material—to produce attitude change and improve source credibility.
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| compliance response | The audience does what is socially acceptable based on the persuader's message.
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| concept maps | Pictures or diagrams that allow you to visualize main and subordinate ideas related to a more general topic.
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| concrete words | Words that are specific, narrow, particular, and based on what you can sense.
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| connotative meaning | The idea suggested by a word other than its explicit meaning.
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| Consistency persuades | The concept that audiences are more likely to change their behavior if the suggested change is consistent with their present beliefs, attitudes, and values.
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| constructive presentations | Debate presentations in which arguments for both sides of the debate are initially presented.
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| contrast | Shows how unlike one thing is from another by high- lighting differences.
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| control | The ability to influence our environment.
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| conventional wisdom | The popular opinions of the time about issues, styles, topics, trends, and social mores; the customary set of understandings of what is true or right.
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| cost-benefit analysis | The idea that an audience is more likely to change their behavior if the suggested change will benefit them more than it will cost them.
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| criteria | The standards by which a group must judge potential solutions.
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| critical response | The audience focuses on the arguments, the quality of the message, and the truth or accuracy of the message.
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| current topics | Topics that are of interest today because they are in the news, in the media, and on the minds of people in your audience.
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| debate | Members of a group divide responsibilities and present both "pro" and "con" sides of a controversial topic.
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| dedication presentation | Honors someone by naming an event, place, or other object after the honoree.
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| deductive reasoning | The presenter bases his or her claim on some premise that is generally affirmed by the audience.
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| defensive response | The audience fends off the persuader's message to protect existing beliefs, attitudes, and values.
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| defining | Revealing the presenter's intended meaning of a term, especially if the term is technical, scientific, controversial, or not commonly used.
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| definitions | Determinations of meaning through description, simplification, examples, analysis, comparison, explanation, or illustration.
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| degree questions | Questions used in interviews and in audience analysis; questionnaires that ask to what extent a respondent agrees or disagrees with a question.
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| deletion | An articulation problem that occurs when a sound is dropped or left out of a word.
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| delivery | The verbal and nonverbal techniques used to present the message.
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| demographics | Audience characteristics such as gender, composition, age, ethnicity, economic status, occupation, and education.
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| demonstrating | Showing the audience an object, person, or place; showing the audience how something works; showing the audience how to do something; or showing the audience why something occurs.
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| demonstration presentation | A talk intended to teach audience members how some- thing works or how to perform some task.
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| denotative meaning | The direct, explicit meaning or reference of a word.
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| describing | When the presenter evokes the meaning of a person, place, object, or experience by telling about its size, weight, color, texture, smell, or his or her feelings about it.
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| descriptive language | Attempts to observe objectively and without judgment.
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| disposition | The arrangement and structure of a presentation.
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| dual coding | Because people tend to learn words separately from other sensory stimuli, presenters can use words as one channel, and other senses as another channel through which information can be presented.
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| duration | The amount of time devoted to the parts of a speech (e.g., introduction, evidence, main points) and the dwelling on words for effect.
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| dynamism | The energy you expend in delivering your message.
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| electronic catalog | A database containing information about books, journals, and other resources available in the library.
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| enunciation | A vocal aspect of delivery that involves the pronunciation and articulation of words; pronouncing correctly and producing the sounds clearly so that the language is understandable.
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| ethnicity | People who are united through "language, historical origins, nation-state, or cultural system."
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| etymology | The origin of a word.
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| evaluative language | Language that is full of judgments about the goodness or badness of a person or situation.
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| evidence | Data on which proof may be based.
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| examples | Specific instances used to illustrate your point.
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| expert testimony | Statements made by someone who has special knowledge or expertise about an issue or idea.
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| explaining | Reveals how something works, why something occurred, or how something should be evaluated.
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| explicitness | The extent to which the persuader makes his or her intentions clear in the message.
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| extemporaneous delivery | A mode of delivery that allows some preparation but does not require the presenter to script out or memorize the speech.
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| extemporaneous mode | A method of speech delivery in which the presenter delivers a presentation from a key word outline or from brief notes.
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| eye contact | A nonverbal aspect of delivery that involves the speaker's looking directly at audience members to monitor their responses to the message; in public speaking, eye contact is an asset because it permits the presenter to adapt to audience responses and to assess the effects of the message.
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| fallacy | An error in reasoning that weakens an argument.
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| farewell presentation | A person is paid tribute for their service before leaving.
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| feedback | Verbal and nonverbal responses by the audience.
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| figurative language | Comparing one concept to another analogous but different concept.
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| Five Canons of Rhetoric | The essential skills associated with public dialogue and communication that Roman scholars synthesized from the teachings of Greek philosophers and teachers. The Five Canons are invention, disposition, style, memory, and delivery.
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| flowchart | A visual diagram representing hierarchical structures or sequential processes.
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| fluency | A vocal aspect of delivery that involves the smooth flow of words and the absence of vocalized pauses.
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| forecasting | Tells the audience how you are going to cover the topic.
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| formal sentence outline | A final outline in complete sentence form, which includes the title, specific purpose, thesis statement, introduction of the speech, body of the speech, conclusion of the speech, and a bibliography of sources.
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| gestures | A bodily aspect of delivery that involves motions of the hands or body to indicate emphasis, commitment, and other feelings about the topic, audience, and occasion.
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| hearing | Receiving sound waves.
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| hierarchy of needs | A pyramid that builds from basic physiological needs like the need for oxygen all the way up to self- actualization needs—the realization of one's highest potential.
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| humor | The ability to perceive and express that which is amusing or comical.
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| hyperbole | A kind of overstatement or use of a word or words that exaggerates the actual situation.
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| ill-defined problem | A task facing the group that has unclear or undefined objectives.
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| important criteria | Standards for evaluating alternatives that should be met, but the group has some flexibility.
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| impromptu mode | A method of speech delivery in which the presenter has no advance preparation.
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| impromptu presentation | A type of talk that does not allow for substantial planning and practice before the presentation is given.
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| inclusion | People need to belong to, or be included in, groups with others.
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| inclusive language | Language that does not leave out groups of people.
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| incremental plagiarism | The intentional or unintentional use of information from one or more sources without fully divulging how much information is directly quoted.
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| inductive reasoning | The persuader amasses a series of particular instances to draw an inference.
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| information hunger | The presenter generates a desire in the audience for information.
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| informative presentation | A presentation that increases an audience's knowledge about a subject or that helps the audience learn more about an issue or idea.
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| instant-replay function | The second function of a conclusion, to remind the audience of the thesis of your message.
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| internal previews | Statements that inform listeners of your next point or points and are more detailed than transitions.
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| internal references | Brief notations of which bibliographic reference contains the details you are using in your speech.
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| internal reviews | Statements that remind listeners of your last point or points and are more detailed than transitions.
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| interviews | Inquiries about your audience directed at an audience member.
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| invention | The art of finding information.
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| key word outline | A brief outline with cue words created for you to use during the delivery of your presentation.
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| lay testimony | Statements made by an ordinary person that substantiate or support what you say.
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| levels of abstraction | The degree to which words become separated from concrete or sensed reality.
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| line chart | A visual aid that illustrates trends in quantitative data.
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| listening | Interpreting sounds as a message.
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| literal language | Words used to reveal facts.
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| main ideas | Generalizations to be remembered in an informative presentation.
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| malapropism | Mistaking one word for another.
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| manuscript mode | A method of speech delivery in which the presenter writes out the complete presentation in advance and then uses that manuscript to deliver the speech but without memorizing it.
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| memorized mode | A method of speech delivery in which the presenter commits the entire presentation to memory by either rote or repetition; appropriate in situations where the same speech is given over and over to different audiences.
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| memory | The "lost canon of rhetoric," this fundamental skill requires speakers to have a strong mental awareness of the messages they intend to present.
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| message | The facial expressions seen, the words heard, the visual aids illustrated, and the ideas or meanings conveyed simultaneously between source and receiver.
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| models | Scaled representations of an actual object or objects.
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| Monroe's Motivated Sequence | An organizational arrangement based on reflective thinking that includes five specific steps: attention, need, satisfaction, visualization, and action.
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| movement | A nonverbal aspect of delivery that refers to a presenter's locomotion in front of an audience; can be used to signal the development and organization of the message.
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| multimedia materials | Digital or electronic sensory resources that combine text, graphics, video, and sound into one package.
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| noise | Interference or obstacles to communication.
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| nonverbal messages | Movements, gestures, facial expressions, and vocal variations that can reinforce or contradict the accompanying words.
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| numbers | Supporting material that describes something in terms of quantities or amounts.
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| observation | A method of audience analysis based on what you can see or hear about the audience.
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| open-ended questions | Like essay questions, questions that invite an explanation and discourage yes or no responses from the per- son being questioned.
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| oral citation | Tells the audience who the source is, how recent the information is, and the source's qualifications.
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| ornamental language | Highly stylized and artful uses of words to convey meanings.
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| ornamentation | The creative and artful use of language.
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| oversimplification | A complex issue described as simple.
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| panel | Group presentations that utilize short introductory statements from panel members and then provide time for interaction and dialogue between the presenters and audience members.
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| parallel construction | Repeating words and phrases and using the same parts of speech for each item.
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| pause | An intentional silence used to draw attention to the words before or after the interlude; a break in the flow of words for effect.
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| periodicals | Sources of information that are published at regular intervals.
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| personal experience | Using your own life as a source of information.
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| personal inventory | Trying to determine a topic by considering features of your life such as experiences, attitudes, values, beliefs, interests, and skills.
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| perspective | Your point of view; the way you perceive the world, reflected in the words you choose.
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| persuasive presentations | A message delivered to an audience by a speaker who intends to influence audience members' choices by changing their responses toward an idea, issue, concept, or product.
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| physical appearance | The way we look, including our display of material things such as clothing and accessories.
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| pie chart | A visual aid illustrating percentages or components of a whole.
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| pitch | A vocal aspect of delivery that refers to the highness or lowness of the speaker's voice, its upward and downward inflection, the melody produced by the voice.
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| plagiarism | (1) A speech, outline, or manuscript from any source other than you. (2) The intentional use of information from another source without crediting the source.
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| preparation outline | The initial or tentative conception of a speech in rough outline form.
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| presentation to entertain | Designed to make a point in a creative and oftentimes humorous way.
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| presentation to pay tribute | Designed to offer celebration and praise of a noteworthy person, organization, or cause.
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| presentation to welcome | Intended to set a tone for a larger event by inviting all participants—including other presenters and audience members—to appropriately engage the event.
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| primacy | Placing your best argument or main point early in the presentation.
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| principle of division | An outlining principle that states that every point divided into subordinate parts must be divided into two or more parts.
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| principle of parallelism | An outlining principle that states that all points must be stated in the same grammatical and syntactical form.
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| principle of subordination | An outlining principle that states that importance is signaled by symbols and indentation.
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| principles of learning | Principles governing audience understanding by building on the known, using humor or wit, using presentational aids, organizing information, and rewarding listeners.
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| problem questions | Group questions that focus on the undesirable present state and imply that many solutions are possible.
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| problem-solution pattern | An organizational arrangement in which part of the speech is concerned with the problem(s) and part with the solution(s) to problem(s).
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| process of communication | The dynamic interrelationship of source, receiver, message, channel, feedback, situation, and noise.
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| projection | Adjusting your volume appropriately for the subject, the audience, and the situation.
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| pronunciation | The production of the sounds of a word.
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| question of fact | The persuasive presentation seeks to uncover the truth based on fact.
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| question of policy | The persuasive presentation raises issues about good- ness and badness, right and wrong, enlightenment and ignorance.
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| question of value | The persuasive presentation enters the realm of rules, regulations, and laws.
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| questionnaires | Surveys of audience opinions.
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| rate | A vocal aspect of delivery that refers to the speed of de- livery, the number of words spoken per minute; normal rates range from 125 to 190 words per minute.
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| rebuttal presentations | Debate presentations where one side presents points in response to arguments advanced by the other side.
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| receiver | The individual or group that hears, and hopefully listens to, the message sent by the source.
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| recency | Placing your best argument or main point late in the presentation.
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| reference librarian | A librarian specifically trained to help find sources of information.
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| relationship | How the audience feels about you as a presenter be- fore, during, and after the persuasive appeal.
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| repetition | Words repeated exactly or with slight variation.
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| reward | A psychological or physical reinforcement to increase an audience's response to information given in a presentation.
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| rhythm | The tempo of a speech, which varies by part (e.g., introductions are often slower and more deliberate) and by the pacing of the words and sentences.
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| ritual | A ceremonial act that is characterized by qualities or procedures that are appropriate to the occasion.
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| Sapir-Whorf hypothesis | Our language determines to some extent how we think about and view the world.
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| search engine | A Web site on the Internet that is specially designed to help you search for information.
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| self-managed work teams | Groups of workers with different skills and duties who work together to produce something or to solve a problem.
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| semanticist | A person who studies words and meaning.
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| sensory aids | Resources other than the speaker that stimulate listeners and help them comprehend and remember the presenter's message.
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| signposts | Direct indicators of the speaker's progress; usually an enumeration of the main points: "A second cause is.."
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| situation | The time, place, and occasion in which the message sending and receiving occurs.
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| small group communication | Interaction between three to nine people working together to achieve an interdependent goal.
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| Small, gradual changes persuade | The principle of persuasion that says audiences are more likely to alter their behavior if the suggested change will require small, gradual changes rather than major, abrupt changes.
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| solution questions | Group questions that slant the group's discussion toward one particular option.
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| source | The originator of the message; the speaker.
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| source credibility | The audience's perception of your effectiveness as a communicator.
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| spatial relations pattern | An organizational arrangement in which events or steps are presented according to how they are related in space.
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| special occasion presentation | A presentation that highlights or punctuates a special event, situation, ceremony, or occasion.
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| specific numbers | Percentages, actual numbers, averages, and ranges of numbers used instead of "many," "most," or some other vague quantity.
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| speech of action | A persuasive speech given for the purpose of influencing listeners' behaviors and actions.
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| speech of introduction | Designed to tell us about the person being introduced and to help establish their ethos.
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| speech of nomination | Introduces and honors someone you wish to place in contention for an award, elected office, or some other competitively selected position.
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| speech of recognition | Typically presented when one or more people are given awards.
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| speech to convince | A persuasive presentation given for the purpose of influencing listeners' beliefs or attitudes.
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| speech to inform | A speech that seeks to increase the audience's level of understanding or knowledge about a topic.
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| speech to inspire | A persuasive speech given for the purpose of influencing listeners' feelings or motivations.
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| speech to persuade | A speech that seeks to influence, reinforce, or modify the audience members' feelings, attitudes, beliefs, values, or behaviors.
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| statistics | Numbers that summarize data or provide scientific evidence of relationships between two or more things.
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| status quo | The way things are currently done.
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| stereotype | A hasty generalization about an individual based on an alleged characteristic of a group.
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| style | The use and ornamentation of language.
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| subordinate ideas | Details that support the generalizations in an informative presentation.
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| substitution | An articulation problem that occurs when one sound is replaced with another.
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| supporting materials | Information you can use to substantiate your arguments and to clarify your position.
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| surveys | Studies in which a limited number of questions are answered by a sample of the population to discover opinions on issues.
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| symbolic | Words that represent the concrete and objective reality of objects and things as well as abstract ideas.
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| symposium | A group presentation in which individual members divide a large topic into smaller topics for coordinated individual presentations.
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| synonyms | A word or words that mean more or less the same thing.
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| table | A visual aid that combines text and/or numbers to efficiently summarize, compare, and contrast information.
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| testimonial evidence | Written or oral statements of others' experience used by a speaker to substantiate or clarify a point.
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| text slide | A visual aid that relies primarily on words and phrases to present and summarize information.
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| thesaurus | A source for synonyms.
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| thesis statement | A one-sentence summary of the speech.
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| time-sequence pattern | An organizational arrangement in which events or steps are presented in the order in which they occur.
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| topical sequence pattern | An organizational arrangement in which the topic is divided into related parts, such as advantages and disadvantages, or various qualities or types.
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| transitions | Statements or words that bridge previous parts of the presentation to the next part. Transitions can be sign- posts, internal previews, or internal reviews.
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| transposition | An articulation problem that occurs when two sounds are reversed.
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| trustworthiness | The degree to which the audience perceives the presenter as honest and honorable.
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| two-sided argument | A source advocating one position will present an argument from the opposite viewpoint and then go on to refute that argument.
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| verbal messages | The words chosen for the speech.
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| virtual library | Web sites that provide links to sites that have been reviewed for relevance and usability.
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| visual aids | Any observable resources used to enhance, explain, or supplement the presenter's message.
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| vocalized pause | A nonfluency in delivery characterized by such sounds as "Uhhh," "Ahhh," or "Mmmm" or the repetitious use of such expressions as "okay," "like," or "for sure" to fill silence with sound; often used by presenters who are nervous or inarticulate.
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| volume | A vocal characteristic of delivery that refers to the loudness or softness of the voice. Public presenters often project or speak louder than normal so that distant listeners can hear the message; beginning presenters frequently forget to project enough volume.
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| wit | The ability to perceive and express humorously the relationship or similarity between seemingly incongruous or disparate things.
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| worldview | The common concept of reality shared by a particular group of people, usually referred to as a culture or an ethnic group.
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