Poetry Terms

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Rhythm

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Rhythm can be described as the beat and pace of a poem.

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Stressed Syllables

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A syllable uttered in a higher pitch—or with greater emphasis—than others.

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Unstressed Syllables

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An unstressed syllable is the part of the word that you don't emphasize or accent.

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Refrain

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A word, line or phrase that is repeated within the lines or stanzas of the poem itself.

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Couplet

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A pair of successive rhyming lines, usually of the same length.

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Internal Rhyme

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A rhyme involving a word in the middle of a line and another at the end of the line or in the middle of the next.

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Free Verse

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Nonmetrical, nonrhyming lines that closely follow the natural rhythms of speech.

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Imagery

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Elements of a poem that invoke any of the five senses to create a set of mental images.

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Iambic

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A word that has two syllables, the first of which is unstressed and the second of which is stressed.

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Iambic Pentameter

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A line of verse composed of ten syllables arranged in five metrical feet (iambs), each of which consists of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable.