Poetry terms Flashcards
Alliteration
A repetition of initial consonant sounds in adjacent words
Acrostic poetry
Poems in which the first letter in the text spells out a word or message
Assonance
Intentional repetition of internal vowel sounds
Archaisms
Words that are no longer in common use
Cacophony
A mixture of harsh, discordant and unpleasant sounds used to jar the reader’s attention
Auditor
To whom the poem is speaking
Blank verse
Unrhymed poetry, each line is iambic pentameter
Consonance
The intentional repetition of internal consonant sounds
Confessional poetry
An extremely candid and frank form of poetry
Dramatic dialogue
A form in which two or more people speak
Couplet
A pair of successive lines of poetry that rhyme
Dramatic monologue
Poem designed to be said by one person
Free verse
Does not conform to the traditional rules of poetry
Epigraph
A brief explanatory statement that sets the poem within its intended context
Iambic pentameter
The metrical pattern which consists of five iambic feet per lines, each iambic foot consists of one unstressed of stressed (pentameter means five per line)
Haiku
A Japanese style poem usually about nature, it is a complete thought 17 syllables, 3 lines, divided into 5, 7, 5
Repetition
Occurs when the poet repeats words, phrases or devices
Lyric poetry
Poems originally meant to be sung or chanted
Rhyme
Similarity of sounds of words
Rhythm
The pattern of stressed and unstressed sounds
Metonymy
Figure of speech that uses an attribute of a thing to stand in for the thing itself, inanimate objects taking the place of a person
Sonnet
Poem of 14 lines written in iambic pentameter, 3 quatrains, 1 concluding couplet (rhyme scheme: ABAB CDCD EFEF GG)
Neologism
A word entirely made up by the poet
Stanza
A group of two or more lines which make up a unit of poetry
