Literary Terms Vocabulary Matching Worksheet for 7th Grade

Press Print worksheet to match twelve literary terms, from plot and theme to foreshadowing, to their meanings.

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NameDateMade at homeroomtools.comDraw a line from each one on the left to its partner on the right.Literary termsplotsettingconflictthemetonemoodironyforeshadowingflashbacksymbolcharacterizationpersonificationa contrast between what seemstrue and what really isthe series of events that a storytells, in ordera part of a story that showsevents from the pastclues planted early that point tolater eventsthe place and the period in whicha story unfoldsa clash between opposing sidesthat a story must settlethe way a writer shows what acharacter is likethe atmosphere of a story: how itmakes a reader feela thing in a story that also meanssomething morewriting about a thing as if it couldact like a personhow the writer feels about thesubject, heard in the wordingthe central idea a story exploresfrom start to finish
NameDateMade at homeroomtools.comDraw a line from each one on the left to its partner on the right.Literary termsAnswer keyplotsettingconflictthemetonemoodironyforeshadowingflashbacksymbolcharacterizationpersonificationa contrast between what seemstrue and what really isthe series of events that a storytells, in ordera part of a story that showsevents from the pastclues planted early that point tolater eventsthe place and the period in whicha story unfoldsa clash between opposing sidesthat a story must settlethe way a writer shows what acharacter is likethe atmosphere of a story: how itmakes a reader feela thing in a story that also meanssomething morewriting about a thing as if it couldact like a personhow the writer feels about thesubject, heard in the wordingthe central idea a story exploresfrom start to finish
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All 36 terms

Story terms 12

  • characterization The way a writer shows what a character is like. "She gave her lunch to the new boy" shows kindness without the word kind.
  • conflict A clash between opposing sides that a story must settle. Two friends who both want the one prize are in conflict.
  • flashback A part of a story that shows events from the past. In the middle of the race, the story cuts to the runner's first lesson.
  • foreshadowing Clues planted early that point to later events. A cough in chapter one can be foreshadowing of an illness in chapter five.
  • irony A contrast between what seems true and what really is. A fire station that burns down is irony. So is saying "Lovely weather" in a storm.
  • mood The atmosphere of a story: how it makes a reader feel. A creaking door and a guttering candle set an uneasy mood.
  • personification Writing about a thing as if it could act like a person. "The wind whispered through the trees."
  • plot The series of events that a story tells, in order. A plot in three steps: a dog goes missing, the family searches, the dog is found.
  • setting The place and the period in which a story unfolds. "A fishing village, one winter long ago" is a setting.
  • symbol A thing in a story that also means something more. In one story a locked gate may be a symbol of a friendship that has ended.
  • theme The central idea a story explores from start to finish. "Honesty has a price" could be the theme of a story about a found wallet.
  • tone How the writer feels about the subject, heard in the wording. "What a lovely little mess" has a playful tone.
Show all 36 terms (24 more)

Literary devices 12

  • anticlimax A letdown after a big build-up. After a long hunt, the treasure chest holds one old sock.
  • flash-forward A scene that jumps ahead to a later time. The story leaves the first day of school and shows graduation day.
  • hyperbole An overstatement so big that nobody takes it literally. "This bag weighs more than a truck."
  • imagery Description that calls up sights, sounds and feelings. "Steam curled off the wet black road."
  • in medias res Starting a story in the middle of the action. A story that opens halfway through a chase begins in medias res. The words are Latin.
  • juxtaposition Placing two unlike things side by side to show a contrast. A scene of a feast set next to a scene of an empty kitchen.
  • metaphor Calling one thing something else to show a likeness. "The lake was a sheet of glass."
  • narrative hook An opening that grabs the reader's attention. "Nobody had opened the red door in forty years."
  • poetic justice A fitting end: good is rewarded and wrong is punished. The cheat who hid the map gets lost without it.
  • rhetorical question A question that makes a point and needs no reply. "Who doesn't like a day off?"
  • simile A figure of speech that compares with like or as. "The lake was as flat as glass."
  • wordplay Clever, funny use of the meanings of words. "The broken pencil had no point."

Characters and conflict 12

  • character arc The change a character goes through during a story. From selfish to generous is a character arc.
  • external conflict A character's struggle against an outside force. A sailor fighting a storm faces an external conflict.
  • internal conflict A struggle inside a character's own mind. Wanting to tell the truth but fearing what comes next is an internal conflict.
  • nemesis An enemy who is very hard to defeat. The hero's nemesis slips away at the end of every chapter.
  • round character A complex character with many sides to their personality. A round character can be brave at school and afraid at home.
  • sidekick A helper who stays close to a more important character. The sidekick carries the lantern and asks the questions.
  • stock character A familiar type of character that readers know at once. The wandering knight of a fairy tale is a stock character.
  • title character The character named in the title of a work. In a book called "Mina and the Moon", Mina is the title character.
  • tragic hero A hero whose own weakness brings about his or her ruin. A king ruined by his pride is a tragic hero.
  • trait A quality that is part of someone's personality. Stubbornness is one trait of the main character.
  • underdog The one who is expected to lose. The smallest team in the league is the underdog of the story.
  • unreliable narrator A narrator whose version of events may not be true. A narrator who brags and leaves things out is an unreliable narrator.

How this list was compiled: Term list chosen for this site on 2026-10-09. Each meaning is written in our own words and was checked that day in two dictionaries: the entry for the term in Wiktionary, the free dictionary (https://en.wiktionary.org/), whose text is under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license, and the entry in the Cambridge Dictionary (https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/). Five terms have no entry in the second dictionary (narrative hook, round character, stock character, title character, character arc) and were read in the articles Narrative hook, Character (arts), Stock character, Title character and Character arc of English Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/), whose text is under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license. The meanings of tone, mood, imagery, irony and poetic justice also rest on the articles Tone (literature), Mood (narrative), Imagery, Irony and Poetic justice, and internal conflict and external conflict on their entries in the first dictionary. Flash-forward was read under flashforward in the first dictionary. Every example after a meaning is our own; no line of a published work is quoted. Licence: own work

How it works

This literary terms vocabulary worksheet opens on twelve story terms for 7th grade: plot, setting, conflict, theme, tone, mood, irony, foreshadowing, flashback, symbol, characterization and personification, with their meanings mixed up down the right.

Read the full guide

A literary devices vocabulary worksheet

In Set, Literary devices prints simile, metaphor, hyperbole, imagery, rhetorical question, juxtaposition, wordplay, flash-forward, narrative hook, anticlimax, poetic justice and in medias res.

Characters and conflict

The third set has round character, stock character, title character, unreliable narrator, internal conflict, external conflict, character arc, tragic hero, sidekick, nemesis, trait and underdog. Under the tool each term has an example of our own: "The lake was a sheet of glass" for metaphor.

  • No book or author is named, so the sheet fits whatever story the class is reading.

Questions and answers

What is the difference between mood and tone?

Tone is the writer's attitude toward the subject, heard in the choice of words. Mood is the feeling the writing leaves in the reader.

What is the difference between a simile and a metaphor?

Both compare two things. A simile uses like or as: "The lake was as flat as glass." A metaphor says one thing is the other: "The lake was a sheet of glass."

What literary terms should 7th graders know?

No single list is official, and this one is our own. It starts with the parts of a story (plot, setting, conflict, theme), then how a story is told: tone, mood, irony, foreshadowing, flashback and symbol.

What is the difference between internal and external conflict?

An internal conflict is a struggle inside a character's own mind, such as wanting to tell the truth but fearing what comes next. An external conflict sets the character against an outside force: another person, a storm, a rule.

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