POETRY

Definition: Alliteration occurs when the initial consonant sounds are repeated in successive words.
Examples:
- “Splish, splash went the water as it fell out of the overfull bucket.”
- “Rifles’ rapid rattle.”
- “bring the book to the bookcase”
- “come and clean your chair”
- “Gretta gathered green gumballs”
- “Peter planted peonies in the pot”
- “Larry's lazy lizard lays like a lump”
Purpose/Effect:
- Sometimes contributes to the rhythm of a line or poem. For example, “Tyger, Tyger, burning bright”.
- Often used for humor or in headlines to capture a reader’s attention. For example: “The tutor who tooted the toot Tried to tutor two tooters to toot Said the two to the tutor ‘ It is easier to toot Than to tutor two tooters to toot!’”
- The repeated consonant sound always serves to emphasize the meaning of the words.

Definition: Assonance is when vowel sounds are repeated in successive non-rhyming words.
Examples:
- “Hear the mellow wedding bells.”
- “And murmuring of innumerable bees.”
- “Slow moves the acid breath of noon Over the copper-coated hill”
Purpose/Effect:
- Similar to alliteration, assonance is used to echo a sound or to contribute to the overall rhythm of the text.
- For example, in “Slow moves the acid breath of noon Over the copper-coated hill,” the repetition of the long “oo” and “o” sounds emphasizes the slow, languid movement of the breeze.

Definition: Onomatopoeia is the use of words whose sound is similar to, or imitates, the sound the word is naming.
Examples:
- “The buzzing of the bees.” The word 'buzz' sounds like the noise bees make when they fly.
- “Slam! Slam! Go the car doors.”
- “Jangle! Jangle! Go the house keys.”
- “Jiggle! Jiggle! Go the keys in the door.”
- “Squeak! Goes the front door!”
- “Thump! Thump! me running down the stairs.”

Definition: A simile is a direct comparison of two unlike things, typically indicated by the use of linking words such as “like”, “as”, “than”, or “resembles”.
Examples:
- “The thick snow over the house was like a snug blanket.”
- “She was as smart as an owl.”

Definition: A metaphor is a direct comparison between two or more seemingly unrelated subjects. In its simplest form, it takes the structure: “The (first subject) is a (second subject).”
Examples:
- “Your room is a pigsty.” (Comparing a messy room directly to a pigsty).

Definition: Personification is a literary device where inanimate objects or non-living things are given human characteristics, qualities, or actions.
Examples:
- “The wind whistled through the trees.” (Giving the wind the human action of whistling).
- “Necessity knows no law.” (Attributing the human capacity to 'know' to an abstract concept like 'necessity').

“He crouched very low like a runner on starting blocks.” – Simile (uses “like” for comparison).
“She sat staring at the stars, mesmerized.” – No direct figure of speech presented in the given definitions.
“The fox crept on his belly like a snake.” – Simile (uses “like” for comparison).
“The island was encrusted with a rainbow of flowers.” – Metaphor (comparing the abundance of colorful flowers to an 'encrustation' or 'rainbow').
“The eagle swooped like a thunderbolt on his prey.” – Simile (uses “like” for comparison).
“Echo wept a waterfall of tears when Narcissus sent her away.” – Metaphor (comparing abundant tears to a 'waterfall') and Hyperbole (exaggeration), though Hyperbole wasn't explicitly defined.
“The trees flamed like magic bonfires in the sunset.” – Simile (uses “like” for comparison).
“The lion looked hungry, hurt and helpless.” – Alliteration (repetition of initial 'h' sound in 'hungry', 'hurt', 'helpless').