Poetry Literary Devices

Allusion

• A direct quote from a famous work.

• A reference to a well-known person, event, thing, or story.

• An exaggerated statement not meant to be taken literally.

• A comparison between two unlike things.

Point of View

• The perspective from which a story is told.

• The main character's name in a story.

• The setting of the story.

• The conflict in the story.

Denotation

• The emotional meaning of a word.

• The dictionary definition of a word.

• A word's connotation in literature.

• The pronunciation of a word.

Simile

• A comparison between two unrelated items using 'like' or 'as'.

• A figure of speech that exaggerates for emphasis.

• A direct comparison between two things without using 'like' or 'as'.

• A phrase that describes something in a non-literal way.

Hyperbole

• A huge exaggeration

• A small understatement

• A literal statement

• A vague description

Metaphor

• A direct comparison between two unrelated objects.

• A figure of speech that exaggerates for effect.

• A type of analogy that uses 'like' or 'as'.

• A statement that contradicts itself.

Mood

• The feeling created by a poem.

• A type of rhyme scheme.

• The main character's journey.

• The setting of the poem.

Alliteration

• Repetition of sounds at the start of nearby words.

• Use of similar sounding words in a sentence.

• A figure of speech that compares two unlike things.

• The repetition of vowel sounds in nearby words.

Personification

• Giving human traits to a non-human object.

• Describing an object using colors and shapes.

• Using metaphors to compare two different things.

• Creating a character that represents an idea.

Assonance

• Repetition of consonant sounds within nearby words.

• Repetition of vowel sounds within nearby words.

• A figure of speech that compares two unlike things.

• A type of rhyme that occurs at the end of lines.