A-B
The repetition of a consonant sounds at the beginning of the word
Alliteration
two lines of verse, stanza, usually in the same meter and joined by rhyme, that form a unit.
Couplet
a line with a pause at the end. Lines that end with a period, a comma, a colon, a semicolon, an exclamation point, or a question mark are end-stopped lines.
End-stopped
Writing or speech that is not intended to carry literal meaning and is usually meant to be imaginative and vivid.
Figurative Language
a figure of speech in which a comparison is expressed without using like or as
Metaphor
A reference to another work of literature, a person, or event
Allusion
Repetition of a consonant sound within two or more words in close proximity.
Consonance
A metaphor developed at great length,
Extended Metaphor
exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally.
Hyperbole
Description in a literary work that appeals to the senses (sight, sound, smell, touch, taste)
Imagery
the repetition of identical or similar vowel sounds
Assonance
a poem which is intended primarily to teach a lesson
Didactic Poem
a poem of serious reflection, typically a lament for the dead.
Elegy
a rhyme of two syllables, one stressed and one unstressed, as "waken" and "forsaken" and "audition" and "rendition." Feminine rhyme is sometimes called double rhyme.
Feminine Rhyme
A fanciful expression, usually in the form of an extended metaphor or surprising analogy between seemingly dissimilar objects.
Conceit
a figure of speech in which an opposition or contrast of ideas is expressed by parallelism of words that are the opposites of, or strongly contrasted with, each other.
Antithesis
A natural pause or break in a line of poetry, usually near the middle of the line.
Caesura
the choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing. Can be formal, informal, or colloquial
Diction
A word inside a line rhymes with another word on the same line
Internal Rhyme
A rhyme ending on the final stressed syllable
Masculine Rhyme
a four-line stanza rhymed abcd with four feet in lines one and three and three feet in lines two and four.
Ballad Meter
a harsh, unpleasant mixture of sounds
Cacophony
pleasant, harmonious sound; opposite of cacophony.
Euphony
the contrast between actual meaning and the suggestion of another meaning
Irony
A type of poem characterized by a single speaker who expresses thoughts, brevity, compression, and the expression of feeling.
Lyric Poem