Poems / Poetry are short pieces of writing that try to draw pictures to portray meaning. The persona / poet (writer) plays with words and the sounds of the words.
| Term | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Alliteration | Neighbouring words that start with the same sound (not necessarily the same letter) | ✓ crazy character constantly creates chaos [k sound] ✗ Honest Henry |
| Exaggeration | Going over the top (but still possible) | I have been waiting for an hour. (Truth: You waited for 5 minutes) |
| Hyperbole | Going over the top unrealistically (impossible) | You are as tall as the IFC. → Impossible. |
| Metaphor | Using another object which has similar characteristics to replace another noun | There is a fireball in the sky. (Replacing the sun → Red and Hot) |
| Simile | Comparing one object to another with similar characteristics using as...as... or like | The clouds are like cotton candy. (Comparing clouds and cotton candy → White and fluffy) |
| Onomatopoeia | Words that imitate or represent sounds | Bang, Clap, Boom, Crash, Meow |
| Personification | Giving an object or idea characteristics of a person | The sea is angry. → There are big waves at sea. |
| Repetition | Emphasizing something by repeating words or phrases | She was twirling and twirling and twirling, round and round. |
| Rhyme | Words that have the same ending sound | Hi and Bye (ending with i sound) me and sea (ending with e sound) |
| Rhyme Scheme | The pattern of rhyming at the end of each line in a poem (labeled with letters A, B, C...) | The day went by, (A) We sang a song, (B) A child started to cry (A) all day long. (B) |
| Stanza | The name for paragraphs in a poem. A group of lines forming a unit. | — |