Literary Terms Quiz #3 Definitions

Sonnet

fourteen line poem with a fixed rhyme scheme. often, sonnets use iambic pentameter: five sets of unstressed syllables followed by stressed syllables for a ten-syllable line.

Stanza

a dividing and organizing technique which places a group of lines in a poem together, separated from other groups of lines by line spacing or indentation.

Couplet

two consecutive rhyming lines of poetry.

Quatrain

a poem consisting of four lines, or four lines of a poem that can be considered as a unit.

Enjambment

continuing a line after the line breaks. ends a line in the middle of a phrase, allowing it to continue onto the next line as an enjambed line.

Volta

a rhetorical shift that marks the change of a thought or argument in a poem.

Free verse

poetry that does not conform to a regular meter or rhyme scheme. it allows for a more natural flow of language and expression.