POETRY TERMS

PLEASE TAKE NOTES AS YOU FOLLOW ALONG.

ACROSTIC

VISUAL POEM THAT SHOWS A WORD GOING VERTICALLY DOWN, THE PHRASES OR SENTENCES COMING OUT OF THE LETTER ARE HORIZONTAL

ALLITERATION

REPETITION OF THE SAME SOUNDS WITHIN WORDS THAT ARE CLOSE TOGETHER

ASSONANCE

REPETITION OF VOWEL SOUNDS WITHIN WORDS

BALLAD

A SONG LIKE POEM THAT TELLS A STORY, OFTEN ONE DEALING WITH ADVENTURE AND ROMANCE

CINQUAIN

POEM WITH 5 LINES

CONCRETE

A POEM WHOSE SHAPE RESEMBLES THE OBJECT IT DESCRIBES

COUPLET

A POEM WITH 2 RHYMING LINES

DIAMONTE

A POEM THAT TAKES A “DIAMOND” SHAPE, USES A PARTICULAR LENGTH OF WORDS

ELEGY

A SOLEMN AND FORMAL LYRIC POEM ABOUT DEATH

END RHYME

WORDS THAT RHYME AT THE END OF A LINE OF POETRY

EPIC

A LONG NARRATIVE POEM

EPITHET

A PHRASE THAT POINTS OUT A NOTABLE CHARACTERISTIC OF A PERSON OR OBJECT

FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE

WORDS OR PHRASES USED IN SUCH A WAY AS TO SUGGEST MORE THAN THEIR USUAL MEANING

FREE VERSE

POETRY THAT IS “FREE” OF TRADITIONAL STRUCTURE

HAIKU

3 LINE JAPANESE POEM WITH 17 SYLLABLES, WRITTEN MOSTLY ABOUT NATURE

HEPTASTICH

7 LINED POEM

HYPERBOLE

FIGURE OF SPEECH THAT EXAGGERATES THE TRUTH TO EMPHASIZE AN IDEA OR FEELING

IMAGERY

WORDS OR PHRASES THAT APPEAL TO ONE OR MORE OF THE FIVE SENSES

LIMERICK

A SHORT HUMOROUS POEM FROM IRELAND WITH 5 LINES RHYMED (AABBA)

LYRIC

A POEM THAT HAS A SINGLE SPEAKER AND EXPRESSES A DEEP EMOTION, OFTEN HAVING A MUSICAL QUALITY

METAPHOR

A FIGURE OF SPEECH IN WHICH ONE THING IS SPOKEN ABOUT AS IF IT WERE ANOTHER, UNLIKE THING

MOOD

FEELINGS OR MEANING CONVEYED IN THE POEM

NARRATIVE POEM

TELLS A STORY

OCTET

8 LINED POEM

ODE

A SINGLE UNIFIED VERSE THAT HAS A SINGLE PURPOSE AND A SINGLE THEME

ONOMATOPOEIA

THE USE OF WORDS WHOSE SOUNDS IMITATE OR SUGGEST THEIR MEANING (CRASH, BUZZ, HISS)

PERSONIFICATION

A FIGURE OF SPEECH IN WHICH AN ANIMAL OR AN OBJECT IS GIVEN HUMAN QUALITIES

QUATRAIN

4 LINED POEM

REFRAIN

ONE OR MORE LINES THAT ARE REPEATED IN A POEM OR SONG

REPETITION

THE USE OF A SOUND, WORD, PHRASE, LINE OR STANZA THAT IS REPEATED TWO OR MORE TIMES IN A POEM

RHYME SCHEME

THE PATTERN OF END RHYME IN A POEM

RHYTHM

THE PATTERN OF STRESSED AND UNSTRESSED SYLLABLES IN A POEM

SENSORY LANGUAGE

DESCRIBES SIGHTS, SOUNDS, SMELLS, TASTES, AND TOUCH

SESTET

6 LINED POEM

SIMILE

COMPARES TWO UNLIKE THINGS, USING THE WORDS

(LIKE, AS, APPEAR, SEEM)

SONNET

14 LINE POEM WITH A FIXED PATTERN OF RHYTHM AND FOLLOWS A RHYME SCHEME

SPEAKER

CHARACTER OR VOICE ASSUMED BY THE WRITER

STANZA

A GROUP OF LINES IN A POEM

SYMBOL

A PERSON, PLACE, OR THING THAT STANDS FOR SOMETHING ELSE

TERCET

3 LINED POEM

THEME

MESSAGE THAT THE AUTHOR CONVEYS IN A POEM

TONE

WRITER’S ATTITUDE TOWARD THE SUBJECT AND/OR AUDIENCE