literary devices Flashcards
Alliteration
Repeated consonant sounds at the beginning of words placed near each other, usually on the
same or adjacent lines; to establish tone, create rhythm
Example: fast and furious
Assonance:
Repeated accented vowel sounds in words placed near each other, usually on the same or adjacent lines; to create a mood or place emphasis on important words
Example: He’s a bruisin’ loser
Consonance:
Repeated stressed consonant sounds at the ending of words placed near each other, usually on the
same or adjacent lines. = pleasing near rhyme, emphasis, slows reader down
boats into the past
Cacophony
A series of harsh, unpleasant sounds to convey disorder; a harsh and jarring scene for the readers.
Example: My stick fingers click with a snicker
Euphony:
A series of musically pleasant sounds, conveying a sense of harmony and beauty, soothe a reader
Example: Than Oars divide the Ocean,
Repetition:
The purposeful re-use of words and phrases for an effect. may contain a different key word each time (parallelism); emphasis/urgency
Example: I was glad; so very, very glad.
Allegory:
A representation of an abstract or spiritual meaning that is understood only after reading the entire poem; conveys hidden, complex meaning
Allusion:
A brief reference to some person, historical event, work of art, or Biblical or mythological
situation or character; adds meaning
Apostrophe:
Speaking directly to a real or imagined listener or inanimate object; addressing that person or
thing by name; conveying emotion
Example: O Captain! My Captain! our fearful trip is done…
Connotation:
A word’s associations apart from its literal meaning; can be positive, negative, or neutral
Contrast:
Closely arranged things with strikingly different characteristics; emphasis
Euphemism:
An understatement, used to lessen the effect of a statement; substituting something innocuous for something that might be offensive or hurtful; soften tone
Example: She is at rest. (meaning, she’s dead)
Hyperbole:
An outrageous exaggeration used for effect, emphasis
Example: He weighs a ton.
Irony:
A contradictory statement or situation to reveal a reality different from what appears to be true.
Example: Wow, thanks for expensive gift…let’s see: did it come with a
Metaphor:
A direct comparison between two unlike things, stating that one is the other or does the action of the other; establish imagery
Example: He’s a zero. Example: Her fingers danced across the keyboard.
Oxymoron:
A combination of two words that appear to contradict each other, dramatic effect, emphasis
Example: a pointless point of view; bittersweet
Paradox:
A statement in which a seeming contradiction may reveal an unexpected truth; causes reader to pause & consider meaning
Example: The hurrier I go the behinder I get.
Personification:
Attributing human characteristics to an inanimate object, animal, or abstract idea, adds emotion
Example: The days crept by slowly, sorrowfully.
Simile:
A direct comparison of two unlike things using “like” or “as.”
Example: He’s as dumb as an ox.
Symbol:
An ordinary object, event, animal, or person to which we have attached extraordinary meaning and
significance
a flag to represent a country, a lion to represent courage, a wall to sy
Synesthesia:
An attempt to fuse different senses by describing one kind of sense impression in words normally used to describe another.
Example: The sound of her voice was sweet.
