Poetry Vocab

caesura

a break or punctuation used to emphasize meaning

personification

a figure of speech in which a non-human thing is given human attributes

Overstatement or Hyperbole

a figure of speech in which an exaggerated statement is made

understatement

a figure of speech in which something is deliberately underrated or said to be less than it is.

metaphor

a form of figurative language which makes a comparison by stating that two items are the same - that other is the other

apostrophe

direct address in poetry

cacophony

harsh discordant sounds in a line

enjambment

involves the running of a line or stanza. It enables the poem to move and develop coherence as well as directing the reader with regard to form and meaning.

oxymoron

is a phrase which brings together two contradictory terms or ideas

metonymy

representative term used for the larger idea.

allieration

the repetition of sounds in nearby words, usually involving the first consonant sounds of the words. Often used to reinforce meaning or to imitate a sound relevant to what is being described.

assonance

the repetition of vowel sounds in a line or series of lines of poetry

similie

there is a direct statement of the similarity of two items, through the use of such words as like or as.

onomatopoeia

this means that the sound of the word is like the sound of the thing it's describing

synecdoche

utilizes a part as representative of the whole.