Poetry

Allegory – A poem or story with a hidden meaning, usually moral, political, or religious. Example: The Faerie Queene by Edmund Spenser.

Alliteration – The repetition of the same consonant sound at the beginning of words in close succession. Example: "She sells seashells by the seashore."

Allusion – A reference to a well-known person, event, or literary work. Example: "He was a real Romeo with the ladies."

Assonance – The repetition of vowel sounds in nearby words. Example: "The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain."

Asyndeton – The omission of conjunctions between words or phrases for effect. Example: "I came, I saw, I conquered."

Blank Verse – Unrhymed iambic pentameter, often used in Shakespearean plays and poetry.

Conceit – An extended, elaborate metaphor that draws an unusual comparison between two things. Example: John Donne's "The Flea," where love is compared to a flea bite.

Connotation – The emotional or cultural meaning associated with a word beyond its literal definition. Example: "Home" connotes warmth and family, while "house" is neutral.

Denotation – The literal, dictionary definition of a word. Example: "Home" means a place where someone lives.

Diction – A poet’s word choice, which affects the tone and style of the poem.

Dramatic Irony – When the audience knows something that the characters do not. Example: In Romeo and Juliet, the audience knows Juliet is alive, but Romeo does not.

English Sonnet Rhyme Scheme – The rhyme scheme ABABCDCDEFEFGG, also known as the Shakespearean sonnet form.

Enjambment – When a line of poetry continues onto the next line without a pause. Example:
"I wonder, by my troth, what thou and I
Did, till we loved?"

Epanalepsis – Repetition of the same word or phrase at the beginning and end of a line or sentence. Example: "The king is dead; long live the king."

Extended Metaphor – A metaphor that continues throughout a poem or a long section of it. Example: Emily Dickinson’s "Hope is the thing with feathers."

Flashback – A sudden shift to an earlier time in a narrative to provide background information.

Hyperbole – An extreme exaggeration for emphasis. Example: "I’ve told you a million times!"

Imagery – Descriptive language that appeals to the senses (sight, sound, taste, touch, smell).

Inversion – Reversing the normal word order in a sentence for poetic effect. Example: "In silent night when rest I took."

Metaphor – A direct comparison between two unrelated things. Example: "Time is a thief."

Metonymy – A figure of speech where something is referred to by something closely associated with it. Example: "The White House issued a statement." ("White House" represents the president or government).

Onomatopoeia – A word that imitates a sound. Example: "Bang, buzz, hiss, crash."

Oxymoron – A combination of contradictory words. Example: "Bittersweet" or "deafening silence."

Personification – Giving human qualities to non-human things. Example: "The wind whispered through the trees."

Refrain – A repeated line or phrase in a poem, like a chorus in a song.

Rhetorical Question – A question asked for effect, not meant to be answered. Example: "Why me?"

Scansion – The analysis of a poem’s meter by marking stressed and unstressed syllables.

Simile – A comparison using "like" or "as." Example: "Her smile was as bright as the sun."

Symbol – An object, person, or event that represents a deeper meaning. Example: A dove symbolizes peace.

Synecdoche – A figure of speech where a part represents the whole. Example: "All hands on deck." ("Hands" represent sailors).

Theme – The central message or underlying idea in a poem.

Tone – The poet’s attitude toward the subject, which can be serious, humorous, melancholic, etc.

Understatement (Litotes) – A figure of speech that downplays something for effect. Example: "It’s just a scratch," when referring to a deep wound.

Verbal Irony – When someone says one thing but means the opposite. Example: Saying "Oh, great!" after spilling coffee on yourself.