Poetry Terms

a poem that does not tell a story but expresses the personal feelings or thoughts of a speaker

a poem usually addressed to a particular person, object or event that has stimulated deep and noble feelings in the poet

A long narrative poem, in a dignified style, celebrating the deeds of a hero

a sad or mournful poem

Poem that reveals character through monologue or dialogue

When a single speaker in literature says something to a silent audience.

3 unrhymed lines (5, 7, 5) usually focusing on nature

a poem that tells a story

14 line poem, fixed rhyme scheme, fixed meter (usually 10 syllables per line)

a simple narrative verse that tells a story that is sung or recited

lyric poem with five tercet stanzas and a quatrain

use of the same consonant at the beginning of each stressed syllable in a line of verse

a reference to another work of literature, person, or event

the repetition of similar vowels in the stressed syllables of successive words

using words that imitate the sound they denote

correspondence in the sounds of two or more lines (especially final sounds)

a rhyme between words in the same line

rhymes that are close but not exact: lap/shape

the pattern of rhyme in a poem

an arrangement of a certain number of lines, usually four or more, sometimes having a fixed length, meter, or rhyme scheme, forming a division of a poem.

two consecutive lines of poetry that rhyme

a stanza of three lines in which each line ends with the same rhyme.

a stanza containing four lines

a regularly repeated line or group of lines in a poem or song

the arrangement of spoken words alternating stressed and unstressed elements

the regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables that can establish the rhythm of a poem

rhythm as given by division into parts of equal duration

Poetry that does not have a regular meter or rhyme scheme

A figure of speech in which an object or animal is given human feelings, thoughts, or attitudes

a technique by which a writer addresses an inanimate object, an idea, or a person who is either dead or absent.

a statement or proposition that seems self-contradictory or absurd but in reality expresses a possible truth.

an expression in which two words that contradict each other are joined

a figure of speech in which a term or phrase is applied to something to which it is not literally applicable in order to suggest a resemblance

a fanciful expression, usually in the form of an extended metaphor or surprising analogy between seemingly dissimilar objects

a figure of speech that expresses a resemblance between things of different kinds (usually formed with ‘like’ or ‘as’)

extravagant exaggeration

The reversal of the normal word order in a sentence or phrase.

something that stands for something else

the ability to form mental images of things or events

a writer’s or speaker’s choice of words

The attitude of the author toward the audience and characters (e.g., serious or humorous).

A figure of speech consisting of an understatement in which an affirmative is expressed by negating its opposite, as in This is no small problem.

substituting the name of one object for another object closely associated with it.
Example:
“The pen [writing] is mightier than the sword [war]”

A figure of speech in which a part is used for the whole (as hand for sailor), the whole for a part (as the law for police officer), the specific for the general (as cutthroat for assassin), the general for the specific (as thief for pickpocket), or the material for the thing made from it (as steel for sword).

a “play on words” based on the multiple meanings of a single word or on words that sound alike but mean different things