Poetry Terms to Know
Stanza A chunk of lines that is grouped together in a poem. (Like the poetry version of a paragraph.)
Enjambment When a line breaks before the end of the sentence. Example: No enjambment: So much depends upon a red wheel barrow. With enjambment: So much depends upon a red wheel barrow.
Rhymes End rhyme– a rhyme that occurs at the end of a line Internal rhyme– a rhyme that occurs within a line (before the end of the line) “No thing I do don’t no thing But bring me more to do It’s true I do Imbue my blue Unto myself I make it bitter”-Fiona Apple, “On the Bound”
Rhyme Scheme A regular pattern of rhyme. Example: I do not like green eggs and ham.A I do not like them, Sam I Am.A I do not like them in a boat.B I do not like them with a goat.B I do not like them in a house.C I do not like them with a mouse.C
Repetition A sound, word, phrase, or line that is repeated for emphasis or structure.
Assonance Repetition of vowel sounds in words without the same consonants at the end. Example: Mountain sound What sound is repeated?
Consonance Repetition of consonant sounds within and at the end of words. Example: The short toddler battered the shutters. What consonant is repeated?
Diction The author’s choice and use of words, usually for a meaningful purpose. Example: How does the following sentence’s diction affect its mood? Bouncing into the room, she lit up the vicinity with a joyous glow on her face as she talked about her fiancé and their wedding plans.
Form Refers to the structure, arrangement of words on the page, where lines break, use or lack of punctuation, etc. The way the poem is set up.
Types of Poetry Traditional– form is highly structured with set rules to follow. Examples- sonnets, haiku, limericks, odes. Free Verse– form does not have a set structure, rhythm, or rhyme scheme. Many free verse poems don’t rhyme at all.
Remember Figurative Language Metaphors Similes Personification Alliteration Onomatopoeia Pun Oxymoron Imagery Extended metaphors Hyperboles Repetition Consonance Assonance