Poetry Terminology

alliteration – the repetition of beginning sounds, usually consonants, in neighboring words 

allegory – a story with a second meaning hidden inside its literal one 

allusion – within a poem, a reference to a literary work or an event, person, or place outside the world of the poem 

anaphora – repetition in which the same word or phrase is repeated, often at the beginning of lines 

anastrophe – a deliberate inversion of the normal order of words 

annotation – a reader’s written comments on a poem 

anthology – a book of poems by different poets 

assonance – the repetition of vowel sounds in neighboring words 

cadence– a rhythmic pattern that’s based on the natural repetition and emphases in speech 

caesura (si·ZHOOR·uh) – a slight but definite pause inside a line of a poem created by the rhythm of the language or a punctuation mark, e.g., a period, dash, or colon in the middle of a line 

cliché – an expression that has been used so much it has lost its freshness or meaning, e.g., a rainbow of colors, as busy as a bee, a blanket of snow; note: the adjective form is clichéd 

close form – poetry written to an established pattern, e.g., a sonnet, limerick, villanelle, pantoum, tritina, sestina, or rondel 

collection – a book of poems by one poet

concrete – a real, tangible detail or example of something; opposite of abstract or general 

couplet – a pair of lines, usually written in the same form 

connotation – the emotions and associations that a word suggests beyond its literal meaning 

denotation – the literal or dictionary meaning of a word 

diction – a poet’s word choices 

elegy – a poem of mourning or praise for the dead 

end-stopped line – when meaning and grammar pause at the end of a line: a line-break at a normal pause in speech, usually at a punctuation mark; the opposite of an enjambed line or enjambment 

enjambed line (enjambment)– when the meaning and grammar of a line continue from one line to the next with no pause; also called a run-on line 

epigraph – a quotation placed at the beginning of a poem to make the poem more resonant 

figurative language – comparisons between unrelated things or ideas: metaphors, similes, personification, and hyperbole are all types of figurative language, which reveals the familiar in a new, surprising way; the opposite of literal language 

free verse – poetry that doesn’t have a set rhythm, line length, or rhyme scheme; it relies, instead, on the natural rhythms of speech; today the most widely practiced form of poetry in the English language 

form – the structure of a poem; how it is built

hyperbole –when a poet exaggerates on purpose for effect 

image/imagery – a sensory response evoked in the mind of a reader by the diction in a poem; not just visual but any sensory impression— sound, touch, taste, odor—inspired by language 

irony – when a poet says one thing but means something else 

line – a group of words in a row; the unit of a poem 

line break – the most important point in a line of poetry: the pause or breath at the end of a line 

literal language – the straightforward meanings of words; the opposite of figurative language 

lyric poetry – short poems (fewer than sixty lines) about personal experiences or feelings; most verse written today is lyric poetry 

metaphor – a comparison in which the poet writes about one thing as if it is something else: A = B, with the qualities of B transferred to A 

open form – see free verse 

oxymoron – a figure of speech that combines two words that contradict each other, e.g., bittersweet 

personification – a comparison that gives human qualities to an object, animal, idea, or phenomenon 

poet laureate – a title given to an outstanding Canadian poet by the Parliament of Canada, usually for one or two years 

prose poem – a piece of writing that has poetic features—rhythm, imagery, compression—but doesn’t rhyme, conform to a set rhythm, or break into lines

rhyme scheme – the pattern of rhyming in a poem; to describe the pattern, each line is assigned a letter, and lines that rhyme are given the same letter, e.g., abab 

sensory diction – language in a poem that evokes one of the five senses 

simile – a kind of metaphor that uses like or as to compare two things: A is like B 

speaker / persona – the voice that speaks the words of a poem, not necessarily the same person as the poet 

stanza – a line or group of lines in a poem that’s separated from other lines by extra white space; a division in a poem that occurs at a natural pause or at a point where the poet wants to speed up or slow down the poem, shift its tone, change the setting, or introduce a new idea or character 

symbol – a thing or action that represents, in addition to itself, something else 

tercet – a unit of three lines, usually written in the same form 

theme – an idea about life that emerges from a poem 

tone – the attitude of the speaker or poet toward the subject of the poem or toward the reader 

tricolon – a rhythm, pattern, or emphasis used three times; a.k.a. “the power of three” 

turn – a point in a poem when its meaning moves in a new, significant direction, or its theme emerges