Poetry Terms

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What is hyperbole?

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Hyperbole is a figure of speech that involves exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally. Example: 'I’m so hungry I could eat a horse.'

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What is personification?

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Personification is a figure of speech in which human qualities are attributed to animals, inanimate objects, or abstract concepts. Example: 'The wind whispered through the trees.'

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What is imagery in poetry?

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Imagery refers to descriptive language that appeals to the senses and creates vivid mental pictures. Example: 'The golden sun set behind the purple mountains.'

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What is onomatopoeia?

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Onomatopoeia is a word that imitates the natural sound of a thing. It creates a sound effect that mimics the thing described. Example: 'buzz', 'bang', 'sizzle'.

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What is a simile?

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A simile is a figure of speech that compares two different things using the words 'like' or 'as'. Example: 'Her smile was as bright as the sun.'

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What is a metaphor?

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A metaphor is a figure of speech that makes a direct comparison between two unlike things without using 'like' or 'as'. Example: 'Time is a thief.'

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What is alliteration?

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Alliteration is the repetition of the same initial consonant sound in a series of words. Example: 'She sells sea shells by the sea shore.'

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What is an idiom?

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An idiom is a phrase or expression that has a figurative meaning different from its literal meaning. Example: 'It's raining cats and dogs' means it's raining heavily.

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What is a stanza in poetry?

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A stanza is a grouped set of lines within a poem, often separated by a space from other stanzas. It is similar to a paragraph in prose.

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What is a rhyme scheme?

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A rhyme scheme is the pattern of rhymes at the end of each line of a poem. It is usually described using letters to indicate which lines rhyme.