Poetry types

EPITAPH
• A short poem, saying or other message on a
gravestone in memory of a deceased person.
– EX: For Mary Fowler, 1792, age 24, Milford, CT
• Molly tho’ pleasant in her day
• Was suddenly seized and went away
• How soon she’s ripe, how soon she’s rotten
• Laid in her grave and soon forgotten.
HAIKU
• A haiku is a simple poem typically about nature or
scenery.
• A haiku has three lines and 17 syllables

• Line 1: 5 syllables
• Line 2: 7 syllables
• Line 3: 5 syllables
Couplet Poetry
• A couplet poem is a 2 line verse that rhyme.
• A Poem can be made up of couplets throughout the
whole poem.
EXAMPLES
1. Twinkle Twinkle little star
How I wonder what you are
2. The bird sang in the tree
It sang tooroo, tooree
3. My Country tis of thee
Sweet land of liberty
 Tercet
• A tercet is a poem, or stanza,
written in three lines.
• Usually rhymes.
• Lines 1 and 2 can rhyme;
lines 1 and 3 can rhyme;
sometimes all 3 lines rhyme.
Winter Moon
How thin and sharp is the moon tonight
How thin and sharp and ghostly white
Is the slim curved crook of the moon to
By Langston Hughes
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Quatrain Poetry
• Quatrains are four line poems that may follow any of
one of the four different rhyme schemes. (ABAB,
AABB, ABBA, ABCA)
• When Quatrains begin to make up a long poem the
quatrains are then called stanzas.
EXAMPLES
The rushing ocean waves
Beat harshly on the sand.
They roar and crash and foam
As they break upon the land.
THE SONNET
• The word sonnet means “a little sound or song”.
• A sonnet is a highly-structured 14 line poem that explores deeply
felt issues such as the fleeting nature of love and the aching
questions of mortality.
• A traditional sonnet has 14 lines, each of which is written in iambic
pentameter.
– That is each line has 5 metric units or feet, and each foot
consists of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable.
THE SONNET
• Sonnets have a set rhyme scheme based on the last
words in each line. You assign a rhyme scheme by
giving each line a letter, in alphabetical order, to each
new sound at the end of the lines.
– Lines that end in the same sound should be
assigned the same letter.
BLANK VERSE
• Blank Verse is Poetry that is written in unrhymed iambic pentameter.
• Example of Blank Verse
• Excerpt from Macbeth by William Shakespeare
Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more: it is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.
BIO POEM
• A bio poem is used Line 1: First Name
to focus on the Line 2: 4 Descriptive Traits
characteristics of a Line 3: Sibling of…
Line 4: Lover of…
person or animal.
Line 5: Who fears…
Line 6: Who need
Line 7: Who gives
Line 8: Who would like to
see…
Line 9: Resident of…
Line 10: Last Name
CINQUAIN
• A cinquain is a 5 line Line 1: a word title
poem or stanza. Line 2: a 2 word phrase that
describes your title, or just
use 2 words
Line 3: a 3 word phrase that
describes an action relating
to your title
Line 4: A 4 word phrase that
describes a feeling relating
to your title.
Line 5: 1 word that refers
back to your title
 Traditional Cinquain
• Traditional cinquain has five
lines containing 22 syllables
in the following pattern:
Line 1 – 2 syllables
Line 2 – 4 syllables Oh, cat
Line 3 – 6 syllables are you grinning
Line 4 – 8 syllables
curled in the window seat
Line 5 – 2 syllables
as sun warms you this December
morning? 14
Word-Count Cinquain
• Word-count cinquain for younger
students uses the following pattern:
Line 1: One word (title)
Line 2: Two words (describe the
title)
Line 3: Three words (describe an
action) Owl
Line 4: Four words (describe a Swift, ferocious
feeling)
Line 5: One word (another word for Watches for food
title)
Soaring through the night
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Hunter
EXAMPLES
Hamster
Cute, Soft
Fat, Noisy, Furry
Small, Colorful, Playful, Hungry
Hamster
Diamante or Diamond Poem
Line 1: One word Noun
• A Diamond Poem Line 2: Two adjectives
compares/ contrasts describing that noun
2 opposite things/ Line 3: Three Verbs that the
objects noun does
• A Diamond Poem is Line 4: 4 Things- 2 for the
composed of 7 lines, top noun, 2 for the bottom
each line specific for noun
a certain aspect of Line 5: Three verbs for the
the poem similar to a bottom noun
Cinquain. Line 6: Two adjectives that
describe the bottom noun
Line 7: One word noun
EXAMPLES
Cat
Furry, Silky
Sleeping, Purring, Meowing
Tail, Fur, Tongue, Collar
Barking, Playing, Licking
Friendly, Big
Dog
 Synonym Diamante
Monsters
Creepy, sinister,
Hiding, lurking, stalking,
Vampires, mummies, werewolves and more –
Chasing, pouncing eating,
Hungry, scary,
Creatures

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 Antonym Diamante

Day
Bright, sunny,
Laughing, playing, doing,
Up in the east, down in the west –
Talking, resting, sleeping,
Quiet, dark,
Night

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 Senryu
• A senryu follows same
pattern as haiku.
• Written in 3 unrhymed lines
of 5, 7, and 5 syllables, with
total of 17 syllables. First day, new school year,
• Is about human nature, backpack harbors a fossil…
rather than natural world.
last June’s cheese sandwich.

By Cristine O’Connell George 21

Concrete Poem
• A concrete poem (also called
shape poem) is written in
the shape of its subject.
• The way the words are
arranged is as important
what they mean.
• Does not have to rhyme.

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 Acrostic
• In an acrostic poem the
first letter of each line,
read down the page,
spells the subject of the
poem. Loose brown parachute
• Type of free verse poem. Escaping
• Does not usually rhyme. And
Floating on puffs of air.
by Paul Paolilli 23
 Limerick
• A limerick is a funny
poem of 5 lines.
• Lines 1, 2 & 5 rhyme.
• Lines 3 & 4 are shorter There Seems to Be a Problem
and rhyme. I really don’t know about Jim.
• Line 5 refers to line 1. When he comes to our farm for a swim,
• Limericks are a kind of The fish as a rule,
nonsense poem. jump out of the pool.
Is there something the matter with him?
By John Ciardi 24
 Nonsense Poems
• A nonsense poem is a
humorous poem with silly
characters and actions. It
is meant to be fun.
• Can be written as a A Princess Laments
limerick or as another I kissed a frog because I’d heard
form of poetry.
That it would turn into a prince.
That’s not exactly what occurred,
And I’ve been croaking ever since.
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 Word Play
• Some poets use a
special kind of word
play by making up
words or misspelling The Walrus
them on purpose. The pounding spatter
Of salty sea
Makes the walrus
Walrusty.
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 Pantoum
• A Pantoum is a rhymed poetic form with stanzas of
four lines each, according to a set pattern.
• The unique line pattern is 1234, 2546, 5768, 7183.
• The rhyme scheme is a b a b, b c b c, c d c d, d a d a.
• Begin with a basic idea and fit it into the scheme.
 SPOKEN WORD
 Spoken word poetry is poetry that is written on a page but
performed for an audience.

 Heavy use of rhythm, improvisation, free association,

rhymes, rich poetic phrases, word play and slang.

 It is more aggressive and “in your face” than more

traditional forms of poetry.