Poetry Vocab

Alliteration

Repeated consonant sound at the beginning of words (usually same or adjacent lines)
ex Fast and Furious

Assonance

Repeated vowel sounds in words placed near eachother
Ex. Hes a bruisin’ loser

Consonance

Repeated consonant sounds at the ending of words placed near eachother
Ex. BoaTs into the pasT, CooL souL

Cacophony

Discordant series of harsh unpleasant sounds helps to convey disorder furthered by combined effect of meaning and difficulty of pronunciation
ex. My stick fingers click with a snicker

Euphony

A series of musically pleasant sounds, conveying harmony and beauty to the language
Ex. Too silver for a seam—

Onomatopoeia

Words that sound like their meanings
Ex. Boom buzz, crackle etc

Repetition

Purposeful reuse of words and phrases for an effect
ex. I was glad; so very, very glad

Rhyme

Words that have different beginning sounds but whose ending sound alike including final bowel sound and everything following it
ex. time slime mime
revival, arrival, survival

Allusion

Brief reference to some person, historical event, work of art, or biblical or mythological situation or character

Ambiguity

A word or phrase that can mean more than one things, even in its context
ex. Robert Frosts ‘The Subverted Flower’

Cliche

Any figure of speech that was once clever and original but through overuse has become outdated

ex. Busy as a Bee

Hyperbole

An outrageous exaggeration used for effect
ex. He weights a ton

Irony

A contradictory statement or situation to reveal a reality different from what appears to be true.
ex. Wow, thanks for the expensive gift.. let’s see: did it come with a Fun Meal or the Burger King equivalent?

Metonymy

A figure of speech in which a person, place, or thing is referred to by something closely
Ex. The White House stated today… Ex. The Crown reported today that…

Oxymoron

A combination of two words that appear to contradict eachother.
Ex. A pointless point of view; bittersweet

Personification

Attributues human characteristics to an inanimate object, animal, or abstract idea

Simile

A direct comparison of two unlike things using “like” or “as”
Ex. He’s as dumb as an ox

Symbol

An ordinary object, event, animal, or person to which we have attached extraordinary meaning and significance - a flag to represent a country, a lion to represent courage, a wall to symbolize separation.
ex. A small cross by teh dangerous curve on the road reminded all of Johnnys death