Key Poetic Terminology - GCSE

Key Term Definition Example

Alliteration

Ambiguity

Assonance

Bathos

Blank Verse

Cadence

Cliche

Colloquial

Conceit

Connotation

Couplet

Dramatic Monologue

Elegy

Ellipsis

End-Stopped

Enjambement

Extended Metaphor

Form

Free Verse

Hyperbole

Iambic Pentameter

Irony

Juxtaposition

Metaphor
Motif

Onomatopoeia

Oxymoron

Pathos

Persona

Personification

Pun

Rhyme

Rhyme Scheme

Rhyming Couplet

Sonnet

Stanza

Symbol

Synecdoche

Syntax

Theme

Tone

Voice
 Glossary of Poetic and Literary Terms

alliteration the use of words with the same starting sound placed near each other to create an
effect (e.g. ‘the comforting sound of silence’)

ambiguity where the meaning of something is uncertain, particularly where words or phrases

may have several meanings

assonance the repetition of vowel sounds in words, for emphasis (e.g. ‘rain/bait’); it is a form
of half-rhyme (see below)

ballad a narrative poem written in short, rhyming stanzas (usually quatrains) often with a
refrain, usually in alternate lines of four and three stresses. The form can be seen most clearly
in ‘Sister Maude’, ‘London’, ‘Spellbound’ and ‘Portrait of a Deaf Man’ with echoes in ‘The Ruined
Maid’ and ‘The Farmer’s Bride’.

bathos a change of tone from serious or thoughtful to silly or unimportant

blank verse poetry written in iambic pentameter (see below), but without rhyme

cadence the rise and fall of rhythm

caesura a pause in a line of poetry, often created by punctuation

chorus a repeating verse or line in a poem or song, sometimes referred to as a ‘refrain’

cliché an overused word or phrase that has lost its force (e.g. ‘sick as a parrot’)

colloquial everyday speech

conceit an elaborate image,

or far-fetched comparison

connotation the associations provoked by a word, phrase or image, that go beyond its literal
meaning

consonance the repeating of rhyming consonants with a change in the vowel (e.g. ‘live / love’,
‘escaped / scooped’)

couplet a pair of lines, often rhyming

dactyl metrical foot consisting of three syllables, the first stressed and the second and third
unstressed (e.g. ‘Half a league, half a league’ or /--/--) Other common rhythmic feet include
iambs (one unstressed and one stressed syllable -/) trochees (one stressed and one unstressed
syllable /-), spondees (two stressed syllables //) and anapaests (two unstressed and one
stressed syllable --/)

dialect a form of speech used in

a particular region or locality or by a particular social group; it can involve different vocabulary,
pronunciation
and sometimes grammar

diction choice of words

double rhyme two rhyming syllables in each word (e.g. ‘double/trouble’)

dramatic monologue a poem in which a speaker, sometimes as a character, addresses the

reader directly, creating a strong voice. Sometimes there is also an imagined listener, as in ‘My
Last Duchess’. Dramatic monologues are particularly prevalent in the ‘Character and Voice’
cluster. Other examples from the Anthology include ‘Out of the Blue’, ‘Spellbound’, ‘The
Farmer’s Bride’
and ‘Sister Maude’.

elegy a poem expressing grief and / or remembrance about someone or something after their
death

ellipsis where a word or phrase is missed out; where a ‘…’ is used

end-stopped an idea or thought (sentence or clause) that ends at the end of the line, usually
marked by either a semi-colon or full stop

enjambment an idea or thought (sentence or clause) that carries on into the next line;
sometimes called a run-on line

extended metaphor a metaphor that continues on into the next line or throughout the poem

form the way a poem is set out or shaped. Traditional forms such as the ballad or sonnet are
set out in a special pattern of metre, line and stanza length, and rhyme scheme.

free verse a poem that follows no particular pattern, though it may borrow elements of more
traditional forms and can, for instance, include rhyme and other types of pattern

half-rhyme a form of partial rhyme where the stressed vowel sounds do not match but the
consonants afterwards do (e.g. ‘love/have’, ‘lover/never’)

hyperbole exaggeration used for effect

iamb a metrical ‘foot’ consisting of two syllables: unstressed / stressed (-/)

iambic pentameter a line of poetry containing five iambs, the most common metre in English
poetry and the hallmark of blank verse
image descriptive language in a poem that appeals to feelings and the senses, creating a
striking picture in the mind; metaphors and similes are types of image

internal rhyme rhyme falling in the middle of a line and usually at the end of the line (e.g. ‘Dr
Foster went to Gloucester’)

irony saying one thing while meaning another, sometimes to make a serious point as well as
to create humour. Irony can be thought of as the creation of distance between what is literally
said and what is meant. (Dramatic irony is where we know more about a situation than the
character speaking or being described.)

juxtaposition the placing of one thing next to another with the effect of drawing attention to
the comparisons or contrasts between the two, therefore often used for ironic effect

lyric usually a short poem expressing the writer’s or speaker’s personal feelings and thoughts

metaphor an image in which one thing stands for another in order to create a striking picture
in the mind
(for example, ‘the golden boat’ to
mean the sun)

metre the organisation of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line that creates rhythm

monosyllabic where words have only one syllable (e.g. ‘the mad dog was bad’)

motif a repeating image or series of images that emphasises a particular idea or theme

narrator the voice telling the events – sometimes the poet, sometimes a persona created by
the poet

onomatopoeia the use of a word that sounds like its meaning (e.g. ‘thump’) 

octave a group of eight lines

oxymoron a phrase where two contradictory terms are used together to highlight and
emphasise both of them (e.g. ‘living death’)

paradox an idea or statement that appears to be contradictory but is in fact surprisingly true:
(e.g. ‘It is cruel to be kind’) or a circumstance or person exhibiting a contradictory nature (e.g.
Medusa’s paradox is that she desires to be looked at but that looking at her will turn the person
to stone)

pararhyme a form of half rhyme where stressed consonants rhyme (e.g. ‘grieve/grave’)

pathos a quality that creates sadness or pity

persona the voice of a speaker or character

personification the treatment of an object or animal as though it had human feelings and
qualities

pun a play on words in which similar-sounding words are used, sometimes to create humour
and sometimes to make a serious point (e.g. ‘Whites only inn’ in Afrika’s ‘Nothing’s Changed’
suggests ‘pub’ and ‘entry’, referring simultaneously
to the restaurant and the effectively-barred doorway)

Petrarchan sonnet a sonnet made up of one octave (usually rhyming abba, abba), followed
by a sestet (usually cdcdcd or cdecde), based on a form invented by the Italian poet, Petrarch

quatrain a four-line verse

refrain repeating line or lines in a poem

rhyme words that have the same sound (though not always the same spelling)

rhyme scheme the pattern of rhymes in a poem

rhyming couplet a pair of lines that have the same rhyme at the end

rhythm the movement of a poem, created by the different stresses of syllables (also known as
metre)

satire the kind of literature in which views or issues are made to look ridiculous

sestet a group of six lines

Shakespearean sonnet a sonnet usually in three quatrains and one couplet, rhyming abba,
cdcd, efef, gg

simile an image in which one thing is compared to another using ‘like’ or ‘as’ (e.g. ‘she sang
like a bird’; ‘as bold as a lion’)

sonnet a lyric poem, usually of 14 lines of iambic pentameter. Sonnets can range from ten
and a half to 16 lines and use other metres, e.g. alexandrines. There are two main types: the
English or Shakespearean sonnet, comprising three quatrains and a couplet, and the
Petrarchan sonnet, comprising an octave and a sestet. Love is the most common theme of
sonnets. Examples in the Anthology include Sonnet 43, Sonnet 116, ‘Ozymandias’, ‘Nettles’,
‘Hour’, ‘The Clown Punk’ and ‘Quickdraw’.

stanza a verse, a group of lines in a poem

syllable the unit of sound in a word. All syllables have at least one vowel. Some words have
several syllables (e.g. ad/ven/ture).
symbol something which represents something else, often with meanings widely understood
(e.g. a ‘heart’ is associated with love)

synecdoche a figure of speech used in several ways, but in particular when a part is used to
represent the whole (e.g. ‘cab’ when referring to a taxi cab or hired car; ‘Joe public’, meaning
any or all members of the public) 

syntax the structure of a sentence; the way words and clauses are organised to form
sentences.

theme the main idea(s) that run through a poem or other work of art

tone the mood or feeling of a poem, or of a voice

voice the speaker of the poem