Poetry Terms

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Theme

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The main idea or underlying meaning a writer explores in a literary work; it’s the lesson or moral of the story.

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Symbol

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Characters, settings, images, or other things that stand in for bigger ideas beyond their literal meaning.

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Connotation

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The idea or feeling that people associate with a word; a word’s secondary meaning.

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Tone

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The attitude of a writer toward a subject that they are writing about.

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Diction

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Word choice; the style of speaking or writing determined by the choice of words.

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Imagery

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Descriptive language that appeals to the senses and creates a visual representation in the reader's mind.

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Mood

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The emotional atmosphere of a literary work; how the reader feels while reading.

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Alliteration

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The repetition of the same initial consonant sounds in a sequence of words.

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Hyperbole

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Exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally.

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Enjambment

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The continuation of a sentence or clause across a line break in poetry.