GlossariesAP® GlossariesAP® English GlossaryGenre

Genre - AP® English Definition

Reviewed by: Nick Redgrove

Published

Genre is a category or type of writing, such as fiction, poetry, drama, or nonfiction. In AP English, students study different genres to understand how a text’s form affects its purpose, structure, and style.

Each genre has its own features. For example, speeches use rhetorical devices, while poetry may use figurative language. Recognising genre helps students analyse a writer’s techniques and respond to different types of texts in essays and exam questions.

Example of genre in an AP English text

The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien blends the genres of fiction and memoir.

Although it is presented as a novel, O’Brien mixes real and imagined experiences from the Vietnam War, challenging the boundaries of truth in storytelling. Understanding the genre helps readers explore themes like memory, trauma, and narrative truth.

Examiner-written AP® English revision resources that improve your grades 2x

  • Written by expert teachers and examiners
  • Aligned to exam specifications
  • Everything you need to know, and nothing you don’t
AP® English revision resources

Share this article

Nick Redgrove

Reviewer: Nick Redgrove

Expertise: English Content Creator

Nick is a graduate of the University of Cambridge and King’s College London. He started his career in journalism and publishing, working as an editor on a political magazine and a number of books, before training as an English teacher. After nearly 10 years working in London schools, where he held leadership positions in English departments and within a Sixth Form, he moved on to become an examiner and education consultant. With more than a decade of experience as a tutor, Nick specialises in English, but has also taught Politics, Classical Civilisation and Religious Studies.

The examiner written revision resources that improve your grades 2x.

Join now