Glossary poetry

Accent (Accentual verse)

Verse that has a fixed number of stressed syllables per line which determines the meter regardless of the number of syllables per line.

Active Voice

When the speaker or subject actively performs the action or actively speaks, making for a more direct, engaging, and dynamic style.

Alliteration (Alliterative verse)

When consecutive words begin with the same consonant sound.

Allusion

A brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing, or idea of historical, cultural, literary, or political significance.

Antithesis

A device in which two contrasting ideas are presented in a balanced and parallel manner to highlight differences and create a rhetorical effect.

Apostrophe

A figure of speech in which the poet addresses an absent person, an abstract concept, or an inanimate object as if it were a living, sentient being capable of responding.

Assonance

A poetic device where the repetition of vowel sounds occurs within nearby words in a line of verse.

Asyndeton

A rhetorical device in which conjunctions (such as 'and,' 'or,' 'but') are intentionally omitted from a series of related clauses to create a fast-paced rhythm.

Ballad

A form of narrative poetry that typically tells a story in a straightforward and dramatic manner, using simple language and repeated refrains.

Beat

The rhythm or meter of a poem created by a pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables.

Blank Verse

A form of poetry characterized by unrhymed lines with a regular meter, such as iambic pentameter.

Caesura

A rhythmic pause or break in the flow of sound within a line of verse, often marked by punctuation or phrasing.

Confessional Poetry

A genre of poetry emerging in the mid-20th century characterized by write-ups about deeply personal and private subjects.

Consonance

Repetition of consonant sounds, especially at the end of words, within close proximity.

Content

The subject matter, ideas, themes, and information conveyed in a literary work.

Couplet

A pair of consecutive lines that usually rhyme and have the same meter, working together to express a complete thought.

Diction (Poetic Diction / Poetic Language)

The choice and arrangement of words by a poet to create a desired tone, mood, and aesthetic effect.

Ekphrasis (Ekphrastic Poetry)

A literary technique where a work of art (such as a painting or sculpture) is vividly described within a poem.

Elegy

A reflective and melancholic poem, typically written in remembrance of someone who has died or as an expression of grief.

Emotive Language

The use of words and expressions that evoke strong emotions and feelings in the reader.

Enjambment

A poetic technique where a line of verse carries over into the next line without a pause or break in meaning.

End Rhyme

Rhymes that occur at the end of two or more lines.

End-Stopping

When a line of poetry concludes with a punctuation mark, indicating a pause or stop.

Epic Poetry

A lengthy narrative poem depicting grand adventures, heroic deeds, or legendary events.

Eye Rhyme

Words that look as though they should rhyme based on spelling, but do not in pronunciation (e.g., 'love' and 'move').

Feet

Units of meter consisting of stressed and/or unstressed syllables (e.g., Iamb, Trochee, Anapest, Dactyl, Spondee, Pyrrhic).

Feminine Ending

When a line of poetry ends with an unstressed syllable.

Foot

A single unit of meter that consists of stressed and/or unstressed syllables.

Form

The formal structural framework of a literary text.

Formal Deviation

When a text deviates from a traditional or conventional formal structure.

Formal Features

Elements specific to poetic structure, such as rhyme scheme, meter, and stanza form.

Free Verse

Poetry that lacks both a fixed rhyme scheme and a meter.

Heroic Couplet

Two rhyming lines of poetry written in iambic pentameter that convey a complete thought.

Hyperbole

Exaggeration used for emphasis or effect.

Imagery

Descriptive language that appeals to the senses and creates a mental image for the reader.

Internal Rhyme

A rhyme that occurs between words within the same line of verse.

Irony

A contrast between expectations or statements and underlying reality.

Limerick

A five-line poem with a strict rhythm and rhyme scheme (AABBA).

Literariness

The unique linguistic and formal properties that distinguish literary texts from non-literary texts.

Litotes

A form of understatement often used for ironic effect.

Lyric Poetry

Poetry that expresses the personal thoughts, feelings, and emotions of the speaker.

Metaphor

A figure of speech making a direct comparison between two unrelated things.

Metonymy

A figure of speech where one word or phrase stands in for another closely related concept.

Metre / Metrical Patterns

The structured rhythmic pattern of stresses in verse (Monometer, Dimeter, Trimeter, Tetrameter, Pentameter, Hexameter).

Narrative Poetry

Poetry that tells a story through a narrator.

Ode

A formal, lyrical poem expressing praise, admiration, or celebration.

Onomatopoeia

Words that imitate the sound associated with the object or action they refer to.

Oxymoron

A figure of speech combining contradictory terms to produce a dramatic or paradoxical effect.

Personification

Attributing human characteristics or feelings to non-human entities or objects.

Poetic Aesthetics

The artistic principles, qualities, and techniques that shape how poetry is written and experienced.

Poetic Diction

The specific choice of vocabulary and phrasing standard to poetic expression.

Poetic Language

Language operating within a poetic structure where words derive context and meaning from surrounding terms.

Poetics

The study of poetic structure, form, and techniques and their aesthetic effects.

Prosody

The study of poetic meter, rhythm, and intonation.

Repetition

Re-using words or phrases for emphasis, rhythm, or thematic effect.

Rhythm

The pattern of stressed and unstressed sounds creating flow in a poem.

Rhyme

Repetition of similar final sounds in words, usually at the end of lines.

Rhyme Schemes

The defined pattern of end rhymes in a stanza or poem (e.g., ABAB, AABB).

Scansion

The process of analyzing and marking the meter of a poem.

Simile

A direct comparison between two distinct things using 'like' or 'as'.

Stanza

A grouped set of lines within a poem (e.g., Couplet, Tercet, Quatrain, Quintet, Sestet, Octave).

Sonnet

A 14-line poem, typically in iambic pentameter, organized under specific structures like Petrarchan or Shakespearean.

Syllable and Syllabic Verse

Verse structured around a set count of syllables per line regardless of stress (e.g., Haiku).

Symbolism

The use of symbols to signify ideas and qualities beyond their literal sense.

Synecdoche

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

Syndeton

The explicit use of conjunctions to link words or clauses in a sequence.

Volta (Turn)

A turn or shift in thought, tone, or emotion within a poem.