AP Lit Poetry Terms

Figure of speech in which a thing, idea, or animal is given human attributes

Using figures of speech to be more effective, persuasive, or descriptive

Use of stylistic devices to reveal the author's attitude toward a subject

Four-line stanzas with ABCB rhyme scheme

Comparison of two unlike things using "like" or "as"

When phrases are similar in construction, sound, meaning, or meter

Stylistic device in which a number of words having the same 1st consonant sound occur in series

Brief reference to a person/place/thing/idea of historical/cultural/literary significance

Comparison of two unlike things without using "like" or "as"

Long and short patterns through stressed and unstressed syllables

Poetry that expresses personal emotions or feelings

An object that represents another to provide deeper meaning

An approach of dividing poetry into feet

Fourteen-line poem written in iambic pentameter

A verse of four lines

Use of sharp, harsh, hissing, or unmelodious sounds

Word that imitates the natural sounds of what it describes

Combination of 2+ incompatible metaphors

A rhythmical pause in a poetic line or a sentence

Use of words or phrases in series that are sweet-sounding or melodious

Figure of speech in which a thing is referred to by the name of one of its parts

Figure of speech that replaces the name of 1 thing with a word w/ which it's closely associated

Unit of measuring poetry according to the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables

Poetry that tells a dramatic story and is meant to be recited

Poetry that tells a story

Eight-line unit of poetic lines

When 2+ words close together repeat the same vowel sound (& may start w/ different consonants)

Rhyme that matches for 2+ syllables

Metrical lines in which its middle words and end words rhyme with one another

Unrhymed iambic pentameter

Rhetorical device in which two opposite ideas are put together to achieve a contrasting effect

Statement that appears self-contradictory

Poetry written in honor of someone deceased

Figure of speech used to intentionally diminish a thing's importance

Six-lined stanza of poetry, often part of a Petrarchan sonnet

Technique used to expose or criticize follies of society using humor, irony, or exaggeration

Division of poetic lines; similar to a paragraph in prose

Poetry without regular meter, rhythm, and rhyme

Repetitive sounds produced by consonants within a sentence or phrase

When a break ends in the middle of a line of poetry

Repetition of similar sounding words occurring at the end of lines

Figure of speech in which a speaker addresses an imaginary character, often in exclamation

Word endings that have the same spelling but different sounds

Pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables within a single line of verse

Three lines, which follow the same rhyme scheme of AAA or ABA

Verse, line, or lines that reappear at the end of a stanza or when a poem divides into parts

Figure of speech in which two opposite ideas are joined together

A pastoral poem with a fixed form and 19-line structure

The message of a story or poem

Figurative language used to represent objects, actions, and ideas in ways that appeal to senses

Two successive rhyming lines with the same meter and form a complete thought

Figure of speech in which words are used opposite from their intended meaning

A comparison of two VASTLY different objects

Comparison of two unlike things that continues throughout a series of sentences/lines

Literary or rhetorical device mean to mock, which uses satirical or ironic remarks

Over-exaggeration of ideas for the sake of emphasis

How words are structured in a sentence or line

When a break ends at the end of a line of poetry

Poetry intended to teach or instruct

Rhyme that matches only a single stressed syllable

Traditional English poetic form consisting of rhyming pairs of lines in iambic pentameter

Play on words for humorous effect