Poem Flashcards
What is a simile?
A comparison using like or as
What is a metaphor?
A comparison that implies that
What is alliteration?
Letters starting successive words that are all the same
What is assonance?
The rhyming of vowel sounds in successive words: Row, row, row your boat
What is enjambment?
A phrase that runs over onto the next line to create an effect
What is an end-stopped line?
A phrase that stops at the end of a line, signalled by punctuation
What is caesura?
A pause in the middle of a line (signalled by punctuation) that implies natural speech or encourages emphasis
What is a couplet?
A pair of lines that rhyme
What is a quatrain?
A group of 4 lines linked by rhyme scheme, or by subject matter
What is iambic pentameter?
10 syllables to a line, every-other syllable stressed. Creates the sound of a heartbeat.
What is iambic tetrameter?
8 syllables to a line, every-other syllable stressed. A quick, snappy rhythm
What is half-rhyme?
A pair of words that almost rhyme, or look like they should rhyme but don’t when spoken aloud: bodies - ladies
What is hyperbole?
A deliberate over-exaggeration for emphasis
What is onomatopoeia?
Words used to imitate sounds
What is blank verse?
Poetry that doesn’t rhyme. Usually used to show real speech
What is a refrain?
A phrase, line, or group of lines that is repeated throughout the poem
What is personification?
Nonhuman things are given human characteristics
What is stress in poetry?
Emphasis given to particular syllables or words
What is a Sonnet?
A poem that is made up of rhyming couplets and a refrain. Possible themes: unrequited love.
What is a Dramatic monologue?
A poem that suggests the character in the poem is talking directly to the reader as if they were part of the story or in conversation.
What is a Pastoral poem?
Poems that paint the countryside in a very idealised way.
What is a Lyric poem?
A poem that seems to express the poet’s feelings.
What is a Ghazal?
A poem about love.
What is a Ballad?
A poem that tells a story.
