English
Poetry terms 1
ENG 102: English Composition II
Literary Terms for Poetry
The definitions for the following terms with which you should be familiar for the unit on poetry are contained in the "Glossary of Literary Terms" in the textbook. Other terms may be added to this list as we discuss the poetry.
sonnet: a 14-line poem, written in iambic pentameter, that deals with a single thought or emotion
Petrarchan/Italian sonnet: a poem of 14 lines, consisting of an octave (rhyming abbaabba) and a sestet (usually rhyming cdecde or cdcdcd)
Shakespearean/English sonnet: a poem of 14 lines (three quatrains and a couplet), rhyming ababcdcdefefgg
meter: the rhythm or beat of a line of poetry determined by a pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables
iambic pentameter: a line of poetry consisting of five feet of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable
foot: a metrical unit, consisting of two or three syllables, with a specified arrangement of the stressed syllable or syllables
octave: an eight-line stanza or the first eight lines of an Italian sonnet
sestet: a six-line stanza
quatrain: a four-line stanza
couplet: two consecutive lines of poetry that rhyme
rhyme scheme: pattern of rhyme in a poem, indicated by letters of the alphabet
rhythm: in poetry, a pattern of stressed and unstressed sounds
assonance: repetition of similar vowel sounds in stressed syllables
alliteration: repetition of consonant sounds, especially at the beginnings of words
villanelle: a poem with five stanzas of three lines rhyming aba, and a concluding stanza of four lines, rhyming abaa
tercet: a three-line stanza
haiku: a Japanese form of poetry having three unrhymed lines of five, seven, and five syllables
blank verse: unrhymed iambic pentameter
free verse: poetry in lines of irregular length, usually unrhymed
imagery: figurative language that appeals to the five senses, especially sight
figurative language: words intended to be understood in a way that is other than literal
metaphor: a comparison made without using "like" or "as"
simile: a comparison made by using "like" or "as"
hyperbole: deliberate use of exaggeration or overstatement to emphasize a point
apostrophe: address to an absent figure or ta thing as if it were present and could listen
personification: giving human traits to inanimate objects
satire: literature that entertainingly attacks folly or vice; amusingly abusive writing
internal rhyme: rhyme within a line
pun: a humorous play on words
enjambment: a line of poetry in which the grammatical and logical sense run on, without grammatical pause, into the next line or lines