stylistic devices encyclopedia

Abecedarius = An acrostic poem. I.e. The poem “ABC” by Robert Pinsky.

Ad Hominem = An argument directed against an individual rather than their argumentative position. I.e. “How can
you argue your case for Veganism when you are enjoying that steak?”
Adage = A concise statement telling a general truth. I.e. “Slow and steady wins the race.”
Allegory = An ideology that can be interpreted with a double meaning. I.e. “The Lion and The mouse.”
Alliteration = Two or more words within the same sentence beginning with the same letter. I.e. “Rocky Road”
Allusion = In which an object or situation from an unrelated context is indirectly referred to. I.e. “She smiles like a
Cheshire cat (Alice in Wonderland).”
Ambiguity = A sentence that is unintentionally funny due to having a double meaning. I.e. “A good life depends on
a good liver. (could be referring to the organ or a living person).”
Anachronism = An error in chronology in a piece of text. I.e. “Brutus: Peace! Count the clock. Cassius: The clock
has stricken three.” (clocks were not invented at the time this text -Julius Caesar- was written).
Anadiplosis = Beginning a sentence with the same word that was used to end the previous sentence. I.e. “Fear leads
to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.” - Yoda from Star Wars. OR the infamous Coca-cola ad.
Analogy = A figure of speech that demonstrates a similar principle between two unrelated concepts. I.e. Blue is to
color as circle is to shape.
Anaphora = When a word or phrase is intentionally repeated at the beginning of sentences or clauses in a
consecutive manner. I.e. “Go big or go home” or Martin Luther King’s “I Have A Dream” speech.
Anecdote = A short story, typically used for comedic purposes, in order to introduce a topic or to demonstrate a
point.
Antimetabole = A phrase that is repeated in reversed order. I.e. “Fair is foul and foul is fair.”
Antithesis = A juxtaposing statement that uses parallel grammatical structure. I.e. “Speech is silver but silence is
gold.”
Apocope = A phonetic device in which a word-final vowel is dropped in order to have a more colloquial effect. I.e.
To say “Cuppa tea” instead of “Cup of tea”.
Aporia = To express doubt. I.e. “How do I love thee?”
Aposiopesis = To suddenly break off in speech. I.e. “I’m so angry, I could – I could--!”
Aptronym = When a person’s name is regarded as appropriate to their occupation in an amusing manner. I.e. Usain
“Lightning” Bolt.
Assonance = The repetition of similar vowel sounds occurring in two or more words within close proximity of one
another. I.e. “Dumb luck”
Asyndeton = To write direct statements by excluding conjunctions. I.e. “And that government of the people, by the
people, for the people shall not perish from the earth.” - Abraham Lincoln.
Cacophony = Inharmonious letter sounds within close proximity of one another. “I detest war because cause of war
is always trivial.”
Catharsis = Emotional development in a character. I.e. “Here’s to my love! O true apothecary! Thy drugs are quick.
Thus with a kiss I die.”
Charactonym = When a character is given a name that implies a certain trait about the character. I.e. Mistress
Quickly, a recurring character in several Shakespeare plays.
Chiasmus = The reversal of a phrase in order to convey similar meaning. I.e. “Mankind must put an end to war or
war will put an end to mankind.” - JFK.
Colloquialism = Informal language. I.e. “My friend is wicked smart!”
Deus Ex Machina = When a seemingly unsolvable problem in a story is suddenly and abruptly resolved by an
unexpected and unlikely occurrence. I.e. William Shakespeare’s “As You Like It”.
Double Entendre = A phrase that has two or more meanings. I.e. “Santa’s helpers are subordinate Clauses.”
Ellipsis = … (used to add suspense or introducing a narrative) I.e. “Once upon a time…”
Epiphany = A climactic realization in a character pertaining to their personal development and perspective. I.e. “I
used to smoke a lot. Everyone let me know that it was bad for my health, however, I didn’t pay any notice. One day I
saw my two-year-old baby trying to grab a stubbed-out cigarette from the ashtray. Seeing this, it suddenly dawned
on me how terrible smoking was, and I stopped smoking.”
Epistrophe = Similar to anaphora however the end of the phrase is repeated rather than the beginning. I.e. “Is it
possible he should know what he is, and be that he is?” - All’s Well That Ends Well by William Shakespeare.
Epizeuxis = The repetition of words or without any intervening phrases or words. I.e. When Hamlet responded to a
question saying, “Words, words, words.”
Ethos = A rhetorical device used to demonstrate and establish credibility and ethical implication. I.e. “Doctors all
over the world recommend this treatment.”
Euphemism = A phrase or figure of speech that provides a synonymous meaning. I.e. “Up-chuck - meaning vomit”
Euphony = Inharmonious letter sounds within close proximity of one another. I.e. “Whose woods these are I think I
know.”
Fable = The moral in a story. I.e. “Slow and steady wins the race.”
Foil = Contradicting characteristics between two characters. I.e. Wisdom and foolishness.
Foreshadowing = A phrase that hints the later events of the plot to the reader. I.e. “I have a bad feeling about this.”
Hubris = A character trait of being overconfident and arrogant. I.e. Jay Gatsby from the Great Gatsby.
Hyperbaton = Inversion of the usual word order. I.e. “Go you must.” - Yoda, Star Wars.
Hyperbole = A figure of speech that creates an exaggerated effect. I.e. “This suitcase weighs a ton.”
Hypophora = To ask a question then answer it immediately; commonly used in public speech. I.e. “Should students
wear uniforms to school? Absolutely not!”
Idiom = A commonly used expression with a figurative meaning. I.e. “Give the cold shoulder (to ignore someone).”
Imagery = The use of figurative language that evokes a sensory experience. There are five types of imagery which
are 1. Visual imagery (sense of sight) 2. Gustatory imagery (sense of taste) 3. Tactile imagery (sense of touch) 4.
Auditory imagery (sense of hearing) 5. Olfactory imagery (sense of smell). I.e. “The bed felt like a cloud.”
Irony = ​Contradictory statements or situations reveal a reality that is different from what appears to be true. I.e.
Telling a rude customer to “have a nice day”.
Isocolon = Parallel sentence structures in length, rhythm and meter. I.e. “Melts in your mouth, not in your hands.”
from the infamous M&Ms ad.
Juxtaposition = A phrase that implies a contrast between two things. I.e. “Light and darkness”.
Lipogram = To intentionally exclude the usage of a particular letter or group of letters entirely in a piece of writing.
I.e. “The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog.”
Litotes = To comment on something in a positive or negative manner by making an understatement. I.e. “He’s not as
young as he used to be” (meaning ‘he’ is old).
Logos = A rhetorical device used to persuade the target audience based on logic and reasoning. I.e. “According to
scientific research, students who get a full night of sleep score better on exams”.
Malapropism = To use a word mistakenly for a similar sounding word with a humorous effect. I.e. The use of the
word ‘indite’ instead of ‘invite’ in the phrase “She will indite him to some supper.” - William Shakespeare, Romeo
& Juliet.
Metaphor = A figure of speech that compares two unlike things without using the words ‘like’ or ‘as’. I.e. “Laughter
is the best medicine”.
Mood = The vibe and feelings evoked in a piece of writing. I.e. Joyous, eerie, etc.
Motif = An object or concept that is repeatedly and relevantly recurring in the plot. I.e. The old man’s eye in
Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe.
Onomatopoeia = Words and/or phrases that imitate sound effects. I.e. “Bang!” or “Ka-pow!”.
Oxymoron = A figure of speech in which two words that are opposing appear directly next to one another in a
sentence or phrase. I.e. “The Great Depression”.
Paradox = A contradictory statement or phrase that logically can make sense. I.e. “Less is more”.
Parallelism = A phrase that has a repetition of grammatical structure. I.e. “No pain no gain”.
Pathetic Fallacy = When emotions are attributed to nature. I.e. “Suddenly my mood changed from joyful to
depressed, and the sunny blue sky turned gray”.
Pathos = A rhetorical device that uses emotional connection to sway the reader. I.e. A television commercial
showing abused animals.
Personification = A figure of speech in which a nonliving thing or concept is given human attributes. I.e. “The
sunflowers hung their heads.”
Polyptoton = The repetition of a root word. I.e. “Absolute power corrupts absolutely.”
Polysyndeton = The use of frequent conjunctions for stylistic effect. I.e. “If there be cords, or knives, or poison, or
fire, or suffocating streams, I’ll not endure it.” - William Shakespeare, Othello.
Red Herring = A misleading or false set of events in a plot used to further engage the reader. I.e. “And then there
were none” by Agatha Christie.
Repetition = The repeating of a statement or phrase to draw attention to it. I.e. “You’re out of order! You’re out of
order! The whole trial is out of order! They’re all out of order!”
Simile = A figure of speech that compares two dissimilar objects using like or as. I.e. “As sly as a fox”.
Spoonerism = To intentionally switch the initial consonants of two consecutive words. I.e. “Bunny phone” instead of
“Funny bone”.
Symbolism = The use of symbols and motifs to represent a theme or general concept. I.e. Mockingbird - represents
innocence in “To Kill A Mockingbird”.
Synecdoche = To refer to part of something in place of the whole. I.e. To use the word “Threads” to refer to clothing.
Tmesis = To include a word inside another word. I.e. “Abso-blooming-lutely”.
Zeugma = To use one word in order to modify two other words. I.e. “It broke her car and her heart”.