| A | B |
|---|
| Diction | the kinds of words a poet uses to communicate meaning |
| Apostrophe | Walt Whitman, "O Captain, My Captain," to the dead Abraham Lincoln |
| Repetition of words/phrases | The poet's "reuse" of certain words or phrases in a poem |
| Alliteration | The repetition of similar sounds, usually consonants, at the beginning of words |
| Rhetorical question | A questions that is asked not for information nor to invite a reply |
| Metaphor | The linking or connection of one thing to another that does not use 'like' or 'as.' |
| Epithet | An adjective or phrase that describes a prominent feature of a person or thing. |
| Oxymoron | The association of two contrary terms, as in the expression 'same difference' |
| Simile | A comparison of two things through the use of 'like' or 'as.' |
| Imagery | Poet's attempt to paint a mental picture in the mind of the reader by use of the senses of sight, sound, smell, touch, and hearing |
| Onomatopoeia | The use of words, such as 'pop,' 'hiss,' and 'boing,' that sound like the thing they refer to. |
| Pun | A play on words that exploits the similarity in sound between two words with distinctly different meanings |
| Cliche | An expression such as "turn over a new leaf" that has been used so frequently it has lost its expressive power |
| Pathetic fallacy | The attribution of human feeling or motivation to a nonhuman object, especially an object found in nature |
| Conceit | An elaborate parallel (comparison) between two between two dissimilar ideas or objects. |
| Paradox | A statement that seems absurd or even contradictory on its face but often expresses a deeper truth |
| Poetic license | The liberty that the poet takes with grammar, figure of speech or committing factual errors in order to strengthen a poem |
| Understatement | The poet presents something as less significant than it really is. |
| Assonance | The repetition of similar vowel sounds in a sequence of nearby words |
| Personification | The use of human characteristics to describe animals, things, or ideas |
| Irony | The poet expresses a meaning different from or contrary to the stated meaning |
| Hyperbole | An excessive overstatement or conscious exaggeration of fact |
