IB Eng Poetry terms
Alliteration: The repetition of initial consonant sounds in neighboring words. (ex: Peter Piper picked a pack of pickled peppers)
Allusion: An implied reference to another work, notable person, or moment in history which an author does not need to explain (ex: “Let’s see how far down the rabbit hole we can go” is an allusion to Alice in Wonderland)
Ambiguity: multiple meanings – intentional or not – of a work, phrase, sentence, or passage
Anaphora: A rhetorical figure of repetition in which the same word or phrase is repeated in (and usually at the beginning of) successive lines, clauses or sentences.
Apostrophe: figure of speech that directly addresses an absent person, an object, or an abstraction (ex: Twinkle twinkle little star, how I wonder what you are)
Assonance: in poetry, the repetition of the sound of a vowel near enough to each other for the echo to
be discernible (ex: men sell the wedding bells)
Asyndeton: A form of verbal compression which consists of the omission of connecting words (usually conjunctions) between clauses. (ex: The most common form is the omission of “and” leaving only a sequence of phrases linked by commas. An empty stream, a great silence, an impenetrable forest. The air was thick, warm, heavy, sluggish.)
Cacophony: a blend of unharmonious sounds (ex: I detest war because cause of war is trivial)
Chiasmus: Figure of speech by which the order of the terms in the first of two parallel clauses is reversed in the second. Ex. From May Leapor’s ‘Essay on Woman’: “Despised if ugly; if she’s fair, betrayed.”
Connotation: what a word suggests beyond its literal dictionary meaning.
Consonance: the recurrence of similar sounds, especially consonants, in close proximity (ex: Shelly sells shells by the seashore)
Cosmic Irony: The perception of fate or the universe as malicious or indifferent to human suffering, which creates a painful contrast between our purposeful activity and its ultimate meaninglessness.
Denotation: The literal dictionary meaning of a word
Diction – word choice – especially with regard to connotation, correctness, clearness, or effectiveness. Combined with syntax, literary devices, etc. to create style.
Enjambment: (in verse) the continuation of a sentence without a pause beyond the end of a line, couplet, or
stanza.
Euphemism: a mild or indirect word or expression substituted for one considered to be too harsh or blunt when
referring to something unpleasant or embarrassing.
Euphony: the quality of being pleasing to the ear, especially through a harmonious combination of words.
Extended Metaphor: Metaphor developed at great length, appearing frequently throughout a piece.
Figurative Language: Non-literal use of language; includes simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole, idioms
Free Verse: Poetry with no regular patterns of rhyme, rhythm or line length
Hyperbole: An exaggeration or overstatement (ex: I’m so hungry I could eat a horse)
Imagery: A word or group of words in a literary work which appeal to one or more of the senses: sight, taste, touch, hearing and smell. The use of images serves to intensify the impact of the work.
Litotes: A form of understatement in which a statement is affirmed by negating its opposite. (ex: He is not unfriendly.)
Meiosis: Intentional understatement, as in Romeo and Juliet when Mercutio is mortally wounded and says it’s only “a scratch.”
Metaphor: A comparison of two unlike things without like or as used (ex: The world's a stage)
Meter: The repetition of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry.
Metonymy: the substitution of the name of an attribute or adjunct for that of the thing meant, for example suit for business executive, or the track for horse racing.
Mood: The emotional response that a piece of literature stimulates in the reader.
Motif: A recurring structure, contrast, or other device that develops or informs a work’s major themes.
Onomatopoeia: The use of words whose sounds express or suggest their meaning. In its simplest sense, onomatopoeia may be represented by words that mimic the sounds they denote such as "hiss" or "meow”.
Oxymoron: Greek for “pointedly foolish.” Author groups two apparently contradictory terms to suggest a paradox. (ex: civil war, black light)
Paradox : Statement that appears self-contradictory or opposed to common sense but on closer inspection contains some degree of truth or validity. Enigma. (ex:The next time I have a daughter, I hope it's a boy.)
Parallelism: Grammatical or rhetorical framing of words, sentences, or paragraphs to give structural similarity. Attracts the reader’s attention, adds emphasis and organization, or rhythm. (ex: Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty.)
Persona: The role or façade that a poet assumes or depicts to a reader, a viewer or the world at large.
Personification: An object or abstract idea given human qualities or human form (The car groaned when I turned the key)
Poetry: In its broadest sense, writing that aims to present ideas and evoke an emotional experience in the reader through the use of meter, imagery, connotative and concrete words, and a carefully constructed structure based on rhythmic patterns. Poetry typically relies on words and expressions that have several layers of meaning. It also makes use of the effects of regular rhythm on the ear and may make a strong appeal to the senses through the use of imagery.
Refrain: the repetition of a phrase or line
Repetition – Duplication of any element of language – sound, word, phrase, clause, pattern
Rhyme: Identical or very similar recurring final sounds in words usually at the end of lines of a poem.
Rhythm: The pattern or beat of a poem.
Simile: A comparison of two unlike things in which a word of comparison (like or as) is used (ex: Your skin is smooth as silk)
Situational Irony: Contrast between what is stated explicitly and what is really meant. (ex: President Regan was once wounded when a bullet bounced off the bullet-proof glass and struck him)
Stanza: A group of lines of poetry is called a stanza. A stanza is like a paragraph in prose.
Symbolism: Objects that carry a greater meaning than themselves. (ex: The American flag stands for liberty)
Synaesthesia: The use of one kind of sensory experience to describe another. Ex. Describing colors as “loud” or “warm”
Synecdoche: A form of metonymy in which a part of an entity is used to refer to the whole.
Ex. “my wheels” instead of “my car.”
Syntax – Way an author chooses to join words into phrases, clauses, sentences.
Tone: The writer’s attitude toward the subject or sometimes the audience.
Verbal Irony: A discrepancy between the true meaning of a situation and the literal meaning of the written or spoken words.
Zeugma (zewg-ma): (zeugmatic) A figure of speech by which one word refers to two others in the same sentence. It may be achieved by a verb or preposition with two objects, as in the final line of Shakespeare’s 128th sonnet: “Give them thy fingers, me thy lips to kiss.” Or it may employ a verb with two subjects, as in the opening of his 55th sonnet: “Not marble nor the gilded monuments Of princes shall outlive this powerful rhyme.”