Meter and Rhythm
This is the arrangement of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry.
Meter
This term describes the repetition of identical sounds at the ends of lines.
End rhyme
A group of lines forming a unit in a poem.
Stanza
This poetic form is typically 14 lines and divided into an octave and a sestet, with a volta marking the shift in thought.
Petrarchan Sonnet
This term refers to a six-line stanza often used to resolve or comment on the issues introduced in the preceding eight lines of a Petrarchan sonnet.
Sestet
A metrical foot consisting of one unstressed syllable followed by one stressed syllable.
Iamb
A rhyme that occurs within a single line of poetry.
Internal rhyme
A poem uses a quatrain where the second and fourth lines rhyme, while the first and third do not. Name this rhyme pattern.
ABCB rhyme scheme
A type of poem written in honor or praise of a specific subject, often characterized by formal tone and heightened language.
Ode
Identify the metrical foot that consists of two unstressed syllables followed by a stressed syllable, often used to create a galloping rhythm in poetry.
Anapest
This metrical foot has two stressed syllables.
Spondee
Repetition of consonant sounds within or at the ends of words in close proximity.
Consonance
This occurs when a sentence or phrase continues beyond the end of a line of poetry.
Enjambment
This poem consists of six stanzas of six lines each, followed by a three-line envoi, with a specific pattern of repeating end words.
Sestina
In a Shakespearean sonnet, this is the structural feature that differentiates it from a Petrarchan sonnet, specifically in its final two lines.
Heroic couplet
A line of poetry with four metrical feet.
Tetrameter
A word that imitates the sound it describes, such as “buzz” or “sizzle.”
Onomatopoeia
A sonnet’s volta typically occurs here, marking a thematic or tonal shift.
Between the octave and sestet
This term describes a type of poetry that focuses on the expression of personal emotions or feelings, often written in the first person.
Lyric poetry
This poetic form repeats entire lines or phrases according to a strict pattern across 19 lines and is known for its fixed refrain.
Villanelle
The process of marking the stresses in a line of poetry to determine its meter.
Scansion
A poetic technique used to create a musical quality in a line of poetry.
Prosody
This poetic technique can combine with enjambment to create a sense of interruption or abruptness, emphasizing a dramatic or emotional pause within the middle of a line.
Caesura
This narrative poem is traditionally written in quatrains with alternating lines of iambic tetrameter and iambic trimeter, often recounting dramatic stories.
Ballad
A pause that disrupts the natural flow of a line, but occurs at the very end of a poetic thought, often marked by punctuation.
End-stop