The 6 Easiest Language Techniques to Find

You get into your exam, read through the short answer passages, and PANIC. You’re stuck - you’ve got 45 minutes to analyse 5 extracts, but you can’t find one single technique to write about!

Don’t worry (we’ve been there), and we’ve compiled a list of the 7 easiest techniques to find and analyse from short answer extracts. What makes these techniques easy to find is that often they lie not in the words of the texts but in the structure and sounds of the sentences, meaning they are easier to pick up with just a quick skim (which is all you really have time for in an exam)

These techniques are very common, and can apply across all forms and text types, such as non-fiction which is notoriously difficult to find techniques for.

Let’s get into it.

1.          Polysyndeton & Asyndeton

These should be your number 1 go to technqiues when you are stuck, especially for prose fiction and non-fiction extracts

These are lifesavers because you don’t need specialist knowledge - just ask: are there too many conjunctions… or none at all?

Polysyndeton = too many conjunctions. It usually involves repeated and / or / but, for example: “We waited and watched and listened and hoped.”

What it does (effects):

-              Builds intensity: the sentence feels like it’s piling up.

-              Creates overwhelm / pressure: the reader feels there’s too much happening.

-              Slows pace slightly because it forces the reader to move through every item.

-              Can mimic breathlessness (like someone speaking emotionally or urgently) or monotony (Eg something going on and on and on)

Asyndeton = conjunctions removed. It often becomes a fast list of commas, for example,  “We waited, watched, listened, hoped.”

What it does (effects):

-              Speeds up pace: it feels sharp, rapid, urgent.

-              Creates a sense of inevitability: things seem to tumble one after another.

-              Sounds decisive: common in persuasive writing to sound confident.

If it’s a list, ask: does it repeat “and” lots, or use none at all? Either way, you’ve got a technique.

2. Truncated Sentences

Truncated sentences are deliberately short - sometimes not even a full grammatical sentence. For example,  “He stopped.” Or  “No warning.” Or “Then silence.”

Why writers use them:

-              Emphasis: short sentences stand out on the page by breaking the flow of the previous sentences.

-              Tension: creates pauses, like a drumbeat.

-              Shock: mirrors disbelief, fear, or realisation.

-              Certainty: in non-fiction, short sentences can feel blunt and authoritative.

Depending on the context, it can suggest panic or fear (“Run.”), seriousness (“This matters.”), finality (“It was over.”) or isolation (“Alone.”)

3. Tricolon (rule of three)

A tricolon is three parallel elements (words, phrases, or clauses). It’s everywhere because humans find patterns of three memorable and persuasive.

For example:  “Cold, tired, defeated.” (three adjectives), “We will fight, we will resist, we will rebuild.” (three clauses) or “In the streets, in the schools, in the homes…” (three repeated phrases)

Why it works:

-              Rhythm: it’s pleasing and memorable.

-              Builds momentum: each part adds force.

-              Creates a sense of completeness: it feels “finished,” like a conclusion.

-              Persuasion: in speeches/articles, it helps make arguments stick.

Effects to choose from (based on tone): inspirational (sounds like a slogan), threatening (like a warning escalating), overwhelming (three negatives piling up) or triumphant (three positives building hope)

4. Listing (control of pace + scale)

Listing is one of the most common techniques in both fiction and non-fiction, and it’s not just “a list.” What matters is: what kind of list is it? Long? Short? Detailed? Abstract?

For example “Receipts, keys, empty bottles, half-read letters.”

What listing can do:

-              Creates abundance: shows lots of something (wealth, clutter, pressure).

-              Creates chaos: messy, fast, uncontrolled detail.

-              Shows routine: repetitive everyday life.

-              Builds realism: specific objects make scenes believable.

-              Shapes tone: a list of harsh nouns feels different from a list of soft ones.

5. Imagery (not just metaphors)

 Imagery is any language that creates a sensory picture, not just similes/metaphors. Under exam pressure, this is key: if you can ‘see’ it, it counts.

 Types you can quickly name

-              Visual imagery (see): “a smear of grey clouds”

-              Auditory imagery (hear): “the floorboards groaned”

-              Tactile imagery (touch): “the air felt gritty”

-              Olfactory imagery (smell): “the stench of bleach”

-              Gustatory imagery (taste): “a bitter aftertaste”

What imagery does:

-              Makes the reader experience the moment, not just understand it.

-              Creates mood (warm imagery = comfort; harsh imagery = danger).

-              Suggests themes (darkness = fear; light = hope; decay = corruption).

-              Shapes the writer’s viewpoint: imagery often reveals attitude.

6. Assonance, Consonance & Sibilance

These are “sound techniques,” and they’re brilliant because they can be used even when the extract seems plain.

Assonance = repeated vowel sounds “moan of the loneliness”. It can create softness, sadness, longing or make phrases flow (musical, reflective)

Consonance = repeated consonant sounds “thick black clucking”. It can sound harsh, mechanical, aggressive, which adds punch and rhythm

Sibilance = repeated “s/sh” sounds “the sea swelled and slipped.” It can sound like whispering = secrecy, menace, or mimic nature = waves, wind, or  sound slippery/sinister depending on context

Always link sound to mood or pace, not a super-specific claim.

Looking for some extra help finding language techniques?

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If you need some help picking out techniques, we’ll help you learn and identitfy difficult language techniques and strengthen your analytical writing.

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