AP English Literature - Literary Terms: 41-60

imagery

visually descriptive or figurative language, especially in a literary work

implied metaphor

a type of metaphor that compares two unlike things without mentioning one of them

internal rhyme

rhyme between a word within a line and another either at the end of the same line or within another line

irony

the use of words to express something other than and especially the opposite of the literal meaning

italian sonnet aka Petrarchan sonnet

denoting a sonnet of the kind used by the Italian poet Petrarch, with an octave rhyming abbaabba, and a sestet typically rhyming cdcdcd or cdecde

litotes

understatement in which an affirmative is expressed by the negative of the contrary (as in "not a bad singer" or "not unhappy")

lyric poem

a short poem, often with songlike qualities, that expresses the speaker’s personal emotions and feelings

masculine rhyme

a monosyllabic rhyme or a rhyme that occurs only in stressed final syllables (such as claims, flames or rare, despair)

metaphor

a figure of speech in which a word or phrase literally denoting one kind of object or idea is used in place of another to suggest a likeness or analogy between them (as in drowning in money)

metaphysical poetry

highly intellectualized poetry marked by bold and ingenious conceits, incongruous imagery, complexity and subtlety of thought, frequent use of paradox, and often by deliberate harshness or rigidity of expression

meter

a measure or unit of metrical verse

metonymy

a figure of speech consisting of the use of the name of one thing for that of another of which it is an attribute or with which it is associated (such as "crown" in "lands belonging to the crown")

monometer

a line of verse consisting of a single metrical foot or dipody

narrative poem

a form of poetry that combines elements of storytelling like plot, setting, and characters with elements of poetry, such as form, meter, rhyme, and poetic devices

octave

a stanza of eight lines

ode

a lyric poem usually marked by exaltation of feeling and style, varying length of line, and complexity of stanza forms

onomatopoeia

the naming of a thing or action by a vocal imitation of the sound associated with it

oxymoron

a combination of contradictory or incongruous words (such as cruel kindness)

paradox

a statement that is seemingly contradictory or opposed to common sense and yet is perhaps true

parallelism

repeated syntactical similarities introduced for rhetorical effect