Literary Terms

Anapest

A metrical foot consisting of two short or unstressed syllables followed by one long or stressed syllable.

 Aphorism/Epigram/Maxim

 A concise statement that expresses a general truth or moral principle.

Asyndeton

The omission of conjunctions (like "and" or "but") in a series of words or phrases.

 Chiasmus/Antimetabole:

 A rhetorical device where words or phrases are repeated in reverse order for emphasis.

 Dactyl

A metrical foot consisting of one stressed syllable followed by two unstressed syllables.

Enjambment

The continuation of a sentence or phrase beyond the end of one line or verse into the next.

Epanalepsis

A figure of speech where a word or phrase at the beginning of a sentence is repeated at the end.

Epithet

 A descriptive word or phrase used to characterize someone or something.

Epistrophe

The repetition of a word or phrase at the end of successive clauses or sentences.

 Feminine Rhyme

A rhyme in which two syllables rhyme, with the stress on the second syllable.

Masculine rhyme

a rhyme of final stressed syllables

 Free Indirect Style

A narrative technique that blends a character's thoughts and the narrator's voice.

Heterometric

Verses in a poem that have varying or irregular meters.

 Iamb

A metrical foot consisting of one unstressed syllable followed by one stressed syllable.

Isometric

Verses in a poem with a consistent or regular meter.

Leitmotif

A recurring theme or motif in a work of literature or music.

Litotes

A figure of speech that uses understatement to emphasize something by negating its opposite.

Metonymy

A figure of speech in which one word is used to represent something closely associated with it.

Motif

A recurring theme, idea, or symbol in a literary work.

 Periodic Sentence

A sentence in which the main idea is withheld until the end, creating suspense or emphasis.

Polysyndeton

The repetition of conjunctions (like "and" or "but") in a series of words or phrases for emphasis.

 Spondee (Spondaic)

A metrical foot consisting of two stressed syllables.

    - Example: "Heartbreak."

Synecdoche

 A figure of speech in which a part of something is used to represent the whole or vice versa.

 Trochee 

A metrical foot consisting of one stressed syllable followed by one unstressed syllable.

Volta

A shift or turn in thought or argument in a poem, often occurring between the octave and sestet in a Petrarchan sonnet.