Poetry Terms

Question 1

Prose

Answer 1

the way we usually write and speak, no rhyme or economy of words

Question 2

Verse

Answer 2

term used to describe poetic lines composed in a measured rhythmical pattern, that are often, but not necessarily, rhymed

Question 3

Stanza

Answer 3

section of poem/ like a paragraph in prose

Question 4

Couplet

Answer 4

2 lines

Question 5

Quatrain

Answer 5

4 lines

Question 6

Repetition

Answer 6

repeating words, lines, or ideas to make a point

Question 7

Refrain

Answer 7

a line or group of lines repeated regularly or irregularly

Question 8

Blank Verse

Answer 8

unrhymed lines of iambic pentameter (10 syllables, every other syllable is stressed; the way Shakespeare writes his plays)

Question 9

Rhyme

Answer 9

repetition of identical or similar concluding syllables in different words, most often at the ends of lines

Question 10

Meter

Answer 10

When a rhythmic pattern of stresses recurs in a poem, it is called meter.

Question 11

Rhythm

Answer 11

term used to refer to the recurrence of stressed and unstressed sounds in poetry

Question 12

Metaphor

Answer 12

comparing two things NOT using like or as

Question 13

Extended Metaphor

Answer 13

an entire poem or page of text making one comparison

Question 14

Simile

Answer 14

comparing two things USING like or as

Question 15

Personification

Answer 15

giving non human things human characteristics

Question 16

Hyperbole

Answer 16

an enormous exaggeration

Question 17

Symbol

Answer 17

something small representing something larger

Question 18

Alliteration

Answer 18

repetition of the same consonant sounds in a sequence of words, usually at the beginning of a word or stressed syllable (descending dew drops)

Question 19

Consonance

Answer 19

common type of near rhyme that consists of identical consonant sounds preceded by different vowel sounds: home, same (worth, breath)

Question 20

Assonance

Answer 20

repetition of internal vowel sounds in nearby words that do not end the same (asleep under a tree)

Question 21

Imagery

Answer 21

word use that paints pictures in readers’ minds

Question 22

Mood

Answer 22

the way the setting affects the readers and characters

Question 23

Tone

Answer 23

how the AUTHOR feels about his characters and subject

Question 24

Allusion

Answer 24

reference to another literary work, person, place, or time

Question 25

Onomatopoeia

Answer 25

a word or combination of words that resemble specific sounds (buzz, rattle, bang)

Question 26

Archetype

Answer 26

term used to describe universal symbols that evoke deep and sometimes unconscious responses in a reader. Common literary archetypes include stories of quests, initiations, descents to the underworld, and ascents to heaven

Question 27

Speaker

Answer 27

The voice used by an author to tell a story or speak a poem. The speaker is often a created identity and should not automatically be equated with the author’s self