Literary Terms Flashcards

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Rhythm

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The beat or pattern of sounds in a piece of writing, especially in poetry. It’s how the words flow when you read them.

Example: Tap your foot to the rhythm in the line, 'The cat sat on the mat.'

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Prose

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Writing that is in regular sentences and paragraphs (like stories, articles, or essays), not poetry.

Example: A chapter in a novel is prose, not poetry.

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Line breaks

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The places where a poet chooses to end one line of poetry and start another. Line breaks can affect the rhythm, meaning, or emphasis.

Example: Roses are red, Violets are blue.

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First Person POV

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When the narrator is a character in the story and uses words like I or we to tell it.

Example: 'I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the dragon.'

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Imagery

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Descriptive language that appeals to your senses (sight, sound, taste, touch, smell) and helps you picture what’s happening.

Example: 'The warm, gooey cookie melted in my mouth.'

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Tone

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The author’s attitude or feelings about the subject, shown through their word choice and style.

Example: 'I can’t wait to start this amazing journey!' has an excited tone.

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Mood

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The feeling a reader gets from a text (for example, happy, tense, or gloomy).

Example: A spooky story might create a scary mood.

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Speaker

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The voice that ‘talks’ in a poem, which is not always the poet.

Example: In a poem about a tree, the speaker might be the tree itself.

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Message

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The main idea or lesson the author wants the reader to understand from the text.

Example: A fable’s message might be 'Always tell the truth.'