Unit 5: Introduction to Poetry

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  1. poetry
    literature in metrical form
    The language of poetry is musical and the word choices exact.
  2. lyric
    of or relating to poetry that expresses emotion
    There are two main kinds of poetry: lyric and narrative. A lyric poem expresses the emotions of the poem’s speaker.
  3. narrative
    consisting of or characterized by the telling of a story
    Narrative poetry tells a story.
  4. epic
    a long narrative poem telling of a hero's deeds
    Long narrative poems that describe the deeds of heroes, gods, or goddesses are called epics.
  5. sonnet
    a verse form of 14 lines with a fixed rhyme scheme
    A sonnet is a fourteen-line poem that usually explores the theme of romantic love.
  6. haiku
    an epigrammatic Japanese verse form of three short lines
    Originating in Japan, haikus are short, three-line poems that describe a single image or scene from nature.
  7. blank verse
    unrhymed poetry, usually in iambic pentameter
    Blank verse is the form most commonly used by Shakespeare in his plays. Blank verse does not rhyme, but each line has five stressed syllables, or beats.
  8. free verse
    poetry that does not rhyme or have a regular meter
    Free verse does not use consistent rhymes or rhythms. Free verse can take any shape and address any subject.
  9. line
    a row of text written across a page or computer screen
    One of the major distinctions between poetry and prose is the use of the line. A line of poetry is a single row of words.
  10. stanza
    a fixed number of lines of verse forming a unit of a poem
    Stanzas are made up of lines in the same way that paragraphs are made up of sentences. In a poem, each stanza is separated from the next by a space.
  11. couplet
    a stanza consisting of two successive lines of verse
    Some of the most common kinds of stanzas include the couplet, which is a two-line stanza, the tercet, which is a three-line stanza, and the quatrain, which is a four-line stanza.
  12. tercet
    a rhythmic group of three lines of verse
    Some of the most common kinds of stanzas include the couplet, which is a two-line stanza, the tercet, which is a three-line stanza, and the quatrain, which is a four-line stanza.
  13. quatrain
    a stanza of four lines
    Some of the most common kinds of stanzas include the couplet, which is a two-line stanza, the tercet, which is a three-line stanza, and the quatrain, which is a four-line stanza.
  14. rhyme
    correspondence in the final sounds of two or more lines
    Rhyme is the repetition of sounds at the ends of words. For example, the word soon rhymes with moon
  15. rhythm
    alternation of stressed and unstressed elements in speech
    Rhythm is the pattern of beats, or stressed syllables, in a line of poetry.
  16. meter
    a pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in verse
    Rhythm is the pattern of beats, or stressed syllables, in a line of poetry. If this pattern is regular, it is called meter.
  17. alliteration
    use of the same consonant at the beginning of each word
    Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginnings of words. For example, the repetition of the b sounds in bright blue bottle is alliteration.
  18. figurative
    not literal
    Figurative language is anything written or spoken that is not meant to be taken literally.
  19. metaphor
    a figure of speech that suggests a non-literal similarity
    A metaphor is a figure of speech in which one thing is spoken or written about as if it were another.
  20. simile
    a figure of speech expressing a resemblance between things
    A simile also compares one thing to another, but it uses the word like or as.
  21. hyperbole
    extravagant exaggeration
    Hyperbole is an exaggeration used for effect or to make a point.
  22. personification
    representing an abstract quality or idea as a human
    Personification is a figure of speech in which something not human is described as if it were human.
Created on Mon Feb 22 10:59:35 EST 2021 (updated Mon Mar 29 09:18:58 EDT 2021)

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