A metrical foot consisting of two syllables in an unaccented, accented pattern.

Two lines of verse, usually in the same meter and joined by rhyme, that form a unit. They end a Shakespearean sonnet.

A joke that results from multiple word meanings or rhyming sounds, e.g., A horse is a very stable animal.

A 14-line poem, typically about love or romance, that contains three quatrains (sets of four lines) and a rhyming couplet. Written in iambic pentameter, and follow the rhyme scheme ABAB CDCD EFEF GG.

A form of poetry that most resembles natural speech. It is made up of unrhymed lines of iambic pentameter.

A protagonist, or central character, who falls or dies because of a character flaw or cruel twist of fate.

When a character speaks in order to be heard by the audience but not, supposedly, by the other characters.

A figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction, e.g., "seriously funny."

A line of verse with ten syllables -- five pairs of one short (or unstressed) syllable followed by one long (or stressed) syllable, for example Two households, both alike in dignity.

A speech given by a character onstage, alone, to let the audience know what he/she is thinking or feeling.

A comic line or moment that offsets more serious content.

When the angry tornado ripped through the town, the people were horrified.

Sun, when you smile down on us, you bring not only light but joy to this world.