Literary Devices

Question 1

imagery/ sensory language

Answer 1

the use of language to create mental images and sensory impressions for emotional effect and intensity

Question 2

Extended metaphor

Answer 2

a metaphor introduced and then further developed throughout all or part of a literary work, especially a
poem—comparison can be made to something else not mentioned in the poem

Question 3

Personification

Answer 3

figurative language in which
nonhuman things or abstractions are represented as having human qualities

Question 4

Hyperbole

Answer 4

an intentional and extreme
exaggeration for emphasis or
effect

Question 5

idiom

Answer 5

Phrases people use in everyday
language which do not make
sense literally, but the meaning
is understood

Question 6

Repetition

Answer 6

Repetition is when an author repeats a word,
phrase, sentence, or stanza for effect or emphasis

Question 7

Rhyme

Answer 7

Rhyme is the repetition of end sounds in two or more words or phrases that appear close to each other in a poem.

Question 8

Alliteration

Answer 8

Alliteration is the repetition of a sound at the
beginning of words

Question 9

Assonance

Answer 9

Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds

Question 10

Consonance

Answer 10

Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds at the end or middle of words

Question 11

Onomatopoeia

Answer 11

a word that sounds like the sound it makes

Question 12

Symbol

Answer 12

A symbol is an object, person, place, or action that has a meaning in itself, and that also stands
for something larger than itself

Question 13

Allusion

Answer 13

An allusion is a reference to a person, place, event, or literary work that a writer expects the
reader to recognize and understand. It may come from history, geography, literature, art,
music, or religion

Question 14

Oxymoron

Answer 14

An Oxymoron is a figure of speech in which opposites are paired for effect

Question 15

Aphorism

Answer 15

a concise statement of a general
truth or principle; like a truism

Question 16

Epigraph

Answer 16

a quotation at the beginning of a
literary work to introduce its theme

Question 17

Irony

Answer 17

a literary technique used to
create meaning that seems to
contradict the literal meaning
or events

Question 18

Verbal Irony

Answer 18

use of words in which the intended meaning is contrary to the literal
meaning

Question 19

Situational Irony

Answer 19

implying through plot or character that a situation is quite different from the way it is presented

Question 20

Dramatic Irony

Answer 20

dramatic device in which a character says or does something that he or she does not fully grasp but which is understood by the
audience

Question 21

Sarcasm

Answer 21

bitter form of irony, can be
intended to tease or hurt

Question 22

Paradox

Answer 22

a seemingly contradictory
statement that on closer analysis
reveals a deeper truth

Question 23

Refrain

Answer 23

phrase or verse recurring at intervals in a song or poem, especially at the end of each stanza; chorus

Question 24

Rhythm

Answer 24

the BEAT created by the sounds off
the words in a poem

Question 25

Stanza

Answer 25

A stanza is a group of related words in a poem, similar to a paragraph of prose but does not
have to have complete sentences

Question 26

Style

Answer 26

it involves HOW something is said rather that what is
actually said

Question 27

Tone

Answer 27

one is the writer’s attitude toward a subject, character, or audience and is conveyed through the author’s choice of diction, imagery, figurative language, details, and syntax

Question 28

Mood

Answer 28

The feeling that the writer creates for the reader.

Question 29

Theme

Answer 29

Theme is the central message of a literary work, or the idea the author wishes to convey about that
subject.