Poetry Terms
English 10
LINE
Definition: A poetic
line of poetry, which
may or may not be a
complete sentence.
– Run-on Line: When the
poetic sentence does not
stop at the end of the
line. Creates
enjambment.
– End-stopped line: A line
whose sense is naturally
completed at the end of
a line. It normally ends
with a punctuation mark.
STANZA
Definition: A grouping
of two or more lines
in a pattern that is
repeated throughout
a poem.
•
•
•
•
•
Couplet: stanza with 2 lines
Quatrain: a stanza with 4 lines
Sestet: a stanza with 6 lines
Octave: a stanza with 8 lines
Refrain: a line or group of
lines repeated exactly or
almost exactly throughout the
poem.
POEM FORM
• Ballad: a poem that tells a story
Definition: The
and is meant to be sung or
organizing principle
recited.
or structure of a
poem.
• Lyric: a poem that aims only at
expressing a speaker’s emotions
or thoughts
• Free Verse: poetry that does not
contain a regular pattern of
rhyme or meter
• Haiku: Japanese form of poetry in
which a few precise images are
used to capture the feeling of a
single moment. Haiku poetry has
17 syllables in 3 lines…5/7/5.
Poem Form (cont.)
• Blank Verse—unrhymed • Sonnet—a 14 line lyric
poetry written in iambic
poem usually written in
pentameter. Used by
iambic pentameter and
Shakespeare in his plays.
a set rhyme scheme.
Shakespearean sonnets
have three quatrains
followed by a couplet
and a rhyme scheme of
abab cdcd efef gg.
SOUND DEVICES
Definition: Auditory
effects used to
communicate mood
and feeling, to unify
ideas, and to
reinforce meaning.
• Alliteration—the repetition of
consonant sounds at the
beginning of words
• Assonance—the repetition of
vowel sounds
• Consonance—the repetition of
consonant sounds in the middle of
or at the end of words
• Onomatopoeia—the use of words
whose sound suggests their
meaning (oink, crunch)
• Repetition—repeating words or
phrases to create impact in a
poem
RHYME
Definition: The similarity of • Slant Rhyme—near rhymes
sound between two
where the words are very
words.
similar, but do not exactly
rhyme (civility/immortality)
• Rhyme Scheme—the
pattern of rhyme in a
• Internal Rhyme—rhymes in
poem. To indicate the
the middle of lines
rhyme scheme of a
• Rhyming Couplets—two
poem, use a separate
consecutive lines of poetry
letter of the alphabet for
that rhyme
“I do not like them in a box.
each rhyme (aabba).
I do not like them with a fox.
I do not like them in a house.
• End Rhyme—rhymes at I do not like them with a mouse.
I do not like them here or there.
I do not like them anywhere.
the ends of the lines
I do not like green eggs and ham.
I do not like them, Sam-I-am.”
RHYTHM
Definition: the pattern or flow of sound
created by the arrangement of syllables
• Stressed Syllables – marked with a
'
• Unstressed Syllables – marked with a
˘
METER
Definition: the pattern of rhythm in a poem
• Foot—the basic building block of
meter; each set or group of
stressed and unstressed syllables
 Iamb – a kind of foot consisting of
one unstressed syllable and one stressed syllable
• Iambic Pentameter—a pattern of ten syllables per
line in an unstressed/stressed metrical pattern
• Scanning—the process of figuring out the meter
of a poem
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
Definition: Language that
contains expressions
that make comparisons
or associations meant
to be interpreted
imaginatively.
Essentially, figurative
language is the
language of poetry.
“You are my
sunshine, my
only sunshine…”
• Simile—makes a comparison between
two things using the word like or as
• Direct Metaphor—makes a comparison
between two things that are basically
unlike but that have something in
common. Metaphors do not use like or
as…instead, they often use is or are to
make their comparison.
• Implied Metaphor—does not tell us
directly that one thing is something else,
but the comparison is assumed
• Extended Metaphor—a metaphor that
is extended, or developed, over several
lines of writing or even throughout the
entire poem
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE (cont.)
• Imagery—descriptive words and phrases that
recreate sensory experiences (taste, touch, see,
hear, feel)
• Personification—a special kind of metaphor in
which human qualities are attributed to an object,
animal, or idea
• Symbol—using one object, person, or idea to
represent another