70 Literary Terms Poetry Terminology HOLT Literature

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70 Literary TermsPoetry TerminologyHOLT
Literature
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tone
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tone
the writers attitude Ex optimistic,
argumentative, lighthearted, etc.
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claim
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claim
1. to demand by or as by virtue of a right
demand as a right or as due to claim an estate
by inheritance. 2. to assert and demand the
recognition of (a right, title, possession,
etc.) assert one's right to to claim payment
for services. 3. to assert or maintain as a
fact She claimed that he was telling the truth.
4. to require as due or fitting to claim
respect.
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proposition
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proposition
an important idea or opinion
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argument
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argument
a statement, reason, or fact for or against a
point This is a strong argument in favor of
her theory.
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assertion
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assertion
a positive statement or declaration, often
without support or reason a mere assertion an
unwarranted assertion.
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evidence
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evidence
facts, statistics, anecdotes, quotes from experts
that are used to support the claim or thesis
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internalconsistency
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internalconsistency
all of the parts of a text are connected and
agree with what came before
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coherence
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coherence
For a text to be logical, the parts of a text
must stick together and be clearly understood
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thesis
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thesis
1. a proposition stated or put forward for
consideration, especially one to be discussed and
proved or to be maintained against objections He
vigorously defended his thesis on the causes of
war. 2. a subject for a composition or essay.
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term
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term
definition/example
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pun
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pun
the humorous use of a word or phrase so as to
emphasize or suggest its different meanings or
applications, or the use of words that are alike
or nearly alike in sound but different in
meaning a play on words.
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plot
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plot
chain of related events that tells us what
happens in a story
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conflict
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conflict
problem faced by a character
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resolved
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resolved
how the story turns out
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complications
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complications
situations that create conflict
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climax
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climax
when the outcome of the conflict is decided
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resolution
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resolution
the last part of the plot the end of the story
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subplots
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subplots
parts that are part of the larger story but are
not as important
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parallelepisodes
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parallelepisodes
the storyteller repeats the main outline of an
episode several times
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proposition
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proposition
an opinion usually in the beginning of a
persuasive article
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facts
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facts
the results of scientific research and surveys
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statistics
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statistics
facts in number form
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examples
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examples
specific instances that illustrate reasons or
facts
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anecdotes
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anecdotes
brief stories, such as personal experiences
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opinion
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opinion
a belief or an attitude
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foreshadowing
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foreshadowing
clues that hint at what will happen later
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characterization
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characterization
the way a writer reveals character
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motivation
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motivation
what makes people behave the way they do
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motives
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motives
why characters do the things they do
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biography
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biography
the story of someones life written by another
person
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actions
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actions
what characters say and do
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character
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character
the way someone is
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biased
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biased
one-sided, treatment of a subject
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autobiography
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autobiography
the story of a writers own life by the writer
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setting
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setting
where and when a story takes place
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mood
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mood
atmosphere the feeling of the story
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chronology
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chronology
time order what happens first, next, and last
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inference
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inference
educated guess based on clues the writer gives
you and your own experience
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conclusion
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conclusion
final thought or judgement about what you have
read
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valid
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valid
both true and logical
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generalization
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generalization
a broad statement that can apply to many
situations
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theme
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theme
answers the question What does this
reveal? the general idea or insight about human
existence
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main idea
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main idea
the message, opinion, or insight that is central
to a piece of non-fiction
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refrain
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refrain
repeated sounds, words, phrases, lines, or a
group of lines
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allusion
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allusion
a reference to features of a culture that people
share (literature, religion, history, mythology,
sports) Ex I have a dream speech
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narrator
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narrator
person telling the story
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verbal irony
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verbal irony
we say just the opposite of what we mean
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situationalirony
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situationalirony
what happens is different from what we expect
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dramatic irony
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dramatic irony
we know something a character doesnt know
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fallaciousreasoning
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fallaciousreasoning
false thinking when people draw incorrect or
false conclusions Ex Because the world is flat,
youll fall off if you sail to the end.
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sterotyping
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stereotyping
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stereotyping
believing that all members of a group share a
certain characteristic Ex All teenagers are
angry and rebellious, and they all sleep too
late.
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fallacy
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fallacy
the assumption that a problem or situation has
only one possible cause Ex If we dont elect
Jane class president, girls will have no say in
running the school.
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analogy
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analogy
a comparison of two things to show how they are
alike used to explain one concept by showing how
it is similar to another concept
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personification
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personification
a non-human thing is described as if it were
human or alive and did something only living
things do
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metaphor
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metaphor
directly compares two very different things Ex
The moon was a golden Grapefruit high up in the
sky.
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simile
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simile
compares one thing to another using like, as,
than, resembles Ex The moon looked like a
gleaming new penny.
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lyrics (poem)
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lyrics (poem)
poems that express feelings and do not tell
stories
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narrativepoem
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narrativepoem
a poem that tells a story
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ballad
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ballad
song or a song like poem that tells a story
usually about lost love or betrayal or death
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tall tale
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tall tale
an exaggerated, far fetched story that betrayal
or death is obviously not true
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exaggeration
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exaggeration
stretching the truth
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epic
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epic
long narrative poem written in formal or elegant
language that tells about a series of
events undertaken by a great hero
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ode
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ode
originated in Ancient Greece celebrate a
particular poem or thing
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sonnet
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sonnet
fourteen line poem
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lambic
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lambic
verse in which the stress is on every other
syllable, starting with the unstressed beat
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elegy
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elegy
a poem of mourning
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free verse
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free verse
does not follow a regular rhyme, scheme, or
pattern
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alliteration
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alliteration
repetition of consonant sounds Ex snow falling
fast
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onomatopoeia
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onomatopoeia
the use of words whose sounds echo their
meaning Ex the chains saws buzz
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imagery
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imagery
language that evokes sensations of light, sound,
smell, taste, and touch
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figures of speech
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figures of speech
language that is based on comparisons and is not
literally true (metaphors, similes,
personification)
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rhythm
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rhythm
the rise and fall of the voice, produced by sounds
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speaker
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speaker
the person who tells the story or talks to you in
the poem
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unity
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unity
all the storys details support the main idea or
topic
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logic
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logic
correct reasoning
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idiom
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idiom
means something different from the literal
meaning of each word Ex Hold your tongue
means dont speak in English
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epilogue
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epilogue
a brief closing section to a piece of literature
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consumer
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consumer
someone who buys something or uses what someone
else buys
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warranty
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warranty
spells out exactly what happens if the product
doesnt work properly and what you are required
to do to receive service
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contract
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contract
spells out exactly what services will and will
not be provided
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productinformation
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productinformation
tells what the product will do
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Poetry Terminology
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hypberole
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hypberole
Unbelievable exaggerations EX Its so hot
outside, you could fry an egg on the sidewalk!
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stanza
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stanza
This is a division of a poem consisting of a
series of lines grouped together in units. It is
the equivalent of a Paragraph.
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couplet
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couplet
two end rhymes in a row
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rhythm
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rhythm
sound effects that are fast, slow, light solemn
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meter
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meter
a poem that has a regular pattern of stressed or
unstressed syllables a repeated pattern used
throughout the poem EX See elements of Poetry
sheet.
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rhyme
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rhyme
Repetition of the sound of a Stressed or
unstressed syllable Ex court/sport day/may
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end rhyme
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end rhyme
occur at the end of a poems lines Ex. There
once was a great sport Played down by the
tennis court.
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internal rhyme
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internal rhyme
occur within the
lines Ex. The fair breeze blew, the white foam
flew.
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slanted rhyme
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slanted rhyme
almost rhymes sounds that are familiar but are
not exactly the same
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eye rhyme
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eye rhyme
spelled similarly, but pronounced differently Ex.
tough/cough
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real rhyme
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real rhyme
end sounds are pronounced the same Ex.
tough/rough
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rhyme scheme
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rhyme scheme
assign a new letter of the alphabet to each new
end rhyme assign the same alphabet letter to the
end word that rhymes with a previous end rhyme
word Ex. (a, a, b, b, a, a, b, b) (a, b, c, a,
b, c)
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free verse
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free verse
regular pattern of stressed or unstressed syllable
s by having no rhymes, it sounds like ordinary
speech
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alliteration
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alliteration
repetition of consonant sounds in words that are
close together Ex. Peter Piper picked a peck
of pickled peppers.
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limerick
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limerick
humorous, five line poem rhyme scheme with lines
1, 2, 5 having the same of syllables (8) and
the same end rhyme and lines 3 4 having the
same of syllables (7) and the same end rhyme
rhyme scheme a, a, b, b, a Ex. Refer to
Elements of Poetry sheet.
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assonance
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assonance
also called vowel rhyme rhyme in which the same
vowel sounds are used with different consonants
in the stressed syllables of the rhyming words,
as in penitent  and reticence.
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prose
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prose
anything that is NOT poetry
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compressedtext
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compressedtext
the use of figurative language that enables the
poet to tell an entire story in just a few lines
or stanzas