Poetry Terms

Mrs. Martin

English

Alliteration

The repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of words

EX: Polly’s pink pajamas

Allusion

Referring to another work of literature or art

Analogy

a point-by-point comparison between two things that are alike in some respect.

Assonance

the repetition of vowel sounds within nonrhyming words.

Ballad

a poem that tells a story and is meant to be sung or

recited

Blank Verse

unrhymed poetry written in iambic

pentameter

Character

the people who take part in the action

Connotation

the attitudes and feelings

associated with a word

Consonance

a recurrence or repetition of consonants especially at the end of stressed syllables without the similar correspondence of vowels

ex. “stroke” and “luck”

Couplet

A pair of lines working as a unit

in a poem(may or may not rhyme)

Couplet Example:

Into my empty head there comea cotton beach, a dock wherefrom

Denotation

the dictionary definition of a

word

Elegy

A lyric poem of mourning—a

reflection on the death of someone or on a

sorrow.

Epic

a long narrative poem about the adventures of a

hero whose actions reflect the ideals and

values of a nation or race

Form

the way a poem is laid out on the page – the length and placement of the lines and the grouping of lines into

stanzas

Free Verse

poetry that does not contain a regular

pattern of rhyme and meter

Haiku

Japanese verse, written in 17 syllables divided into 3 lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables, and employing highly

evocative allusions and comparisons, often on the subject of nature or one of

the seasons.

Iambic Pentameter

a metrical line of five feet, or units, each of which is made up of two syllables, the first unstressed and the second

stressed

Imagery

descriptive words and phrases that re-create

sensory experiences for the reader

Irony

special kind of contrast between appearance and

reality – usually one in which reality is the opposite from

what it seems

Lyric

a short poem in which a single speaker

expresses personal thoughts and feelings

Metaphor

a figure of speech that makes a comparison

between two things that are basically unlike but that have something in

common

Octave (OK-TAVE)

An eight-line stanza in a poem. Most often associated with the first 8 lines of an Italian sonnet.

May also be used for a poem consisting of only 8 lines.

Onomatopoeia

the use of words whose

sounds suggest their

meaning

Crunch Bam Pow Buzz Snap

Parallelism

the use of similar grammatical constructions to express ideas that are

related or equal in importance

Petrarchan (Italian) Sonnet

a sonnet form popularized by Petrarch, consisting of an octave with the rhyme scheme abbaabba and of a sestet with

one of several rhyme schemes, as cdecde or cdcdcd.

Poetry

a type of literature in which words are

chosen and arranged to create a certain

effect

Quatrain

Four line stanza in a poem working

together as a unit(may or may not rhyme)

Repetition

a technique in which a sound, word, phrase, or line is repeated for effect or emphasis

Rhyme

the occurrence of a similar or identical sound at the

ends of two or more words, such as suite, heat, and complete

Rhyme Scheme

the pattern of end rhyme in a poem

rhythm

Rhythm is a musical quality produced by the repetition of stressed and

unstressed syllables. Rhythm occurs in all forms of language, both written and spoken, but is particularly important in

poetry

Sestet (Ses-Tet)

6 line stanza in a poemMost often used to describe the second

division of an Italian Sonnet which usually indicates the personal emotion of the author about the situation presented in the octaveSestet—situation Octave—emotionSestet—problem Octave--solution

Shakespearean (English) Sonnet

a sonnet form used by Shakespeare and having the rhyme scheme abab, cdcd,

efef, gg.

easily recognized by fourteen lines of iambic pentameter.  There are three four line verses with their own rhyme scheme ending with a two line rhyming couplet or

conclusion. 

simile

a figure of speech in which two unlike things are explicitly compared, as in “she

is like a rose.”

sonnet

a poem, properly expressive of a single, complete thought, idea, or sentiment, of 14 lines with rhymes arranged according to one of certain definite schemes.

Speakers

The voice that talks to the reader

Stanza

A group of lines in a poem.

Point of view

The perspective from which a story is told.

theme

Central Ideas explored by a literary work