Glossary of Poetic Terms/Devices

A collection of vocabulary flashcards based on a glossary of poetic terms and devices.

Allegory

A narrative in which abstract ideas or values are personified to illustrate their significance.

Alliteration

The repetition of initial consonants to create a musical effect.

Allusion

A cross-reference to another work of art, relying on shared knowledge to convey meaning.

Antithesis

The rhetorical contrast of ideas by means of parallel arrangements of words, clauses, or sentences.

Assonance

The repetition of vowel sounds to create a partial sound echo.

Ballad

A narrative poem that tells a dramatic story.

Blank verse

Unrhymed iambic pentameter, commonly used in Shakespeare's plays.

Conceit

An extended metaphor that presents a complicated or paradoxical comparison.

Couplet

Two lines of verse with similar meter and end rhyme.

Diction

The choice and use of words and phrases in writing.

Dramatic monologue

A poem in which a fictional character addresses the reader, revealing their circumstances.

Elegy

A poem mourning the death of someone.

Epic

An extended narrative poem centering on a heroic figure.

Figurative language

Language that uses words and comparisons not meant to be taken literally.

Free verse

Poetry that does not have a specific meter or rhyme scheme but retains poetic elements.

Imagery

Descriptive language that creates vivid pictures for the senses.

Irony

A figures of speech where intended meaning is opposite to the literal meaning.

Hyperbole

Exaggeration used for effect.

Lyric poetry

A type of poetry expressing personal emotions or feelings, often in a melodic form.

Metaphor

A figure of speech that makes a comparison between two unlike things.

Meter

The rhythmic pattern of a poem, determined by the arrangement of stressed and unstressed syllables.

Narrative poetry

Poetry that tells a story, such as epics and ballads.

Onomatopoeia

Words that mimic the sounds they describe.

Paradox

A statement that seems contradictory but may reveal a truth.

Personification

The attribution of human characteristics to non-human entities.

Rhyme

The repetition of similar sounds at the end of lines, creating an echo effect.

Rhythm

A regularly recurring pattern of stress in a line of poetry.

Simile

A figure of speech comparing two different things using 'like' or 'as'.

Symbol

An object or action that represents something larger or abstract.

Synecdoche

A figure of speech where a part represents the whole or vice versa.

Trope

A figure of speech involving a change in the meaning of a word.