English 9 Poetry Unit Name:

Poetry Terms – Figurative Language Please find the definitions for each of the following terms. While some definitions might be extended, don’t feel that you have to write down every single word. Record what you need to help you remember clearly what each term means. Including examples can help. Simile: a comparison using “like” or “as”

Eg: She was a busy as a bee. My love is like a red, red rose.

Metaphor: a comparison in which one thing is said to be something else.

Eg: The woman was a tower of strength. An eagle is the wind.

Personification: giving a non-human thing human qualities.

Eg: The clouds strolled across the sky. The sun smiled gently on my shoulders.

Hyperbole: using exaggeration for effect Eg: I waited a thousand years for her to return. Allusion: A reference in one literary work to a character or theme found in another literary work. A reference (often indirect) to something outside of the work, often by the implicit use of another author's words. When a reader notices an allusion, it can call up relevant associations. Eg: You stand like Romeo below the balcony. (a reference to Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare’s play) Symbolism: the use of something concrete to represent something abstract.

Eg: the dove = peace or freedom a rose = love or beauty a candle = life or welcoming

Imagery: the creation of mental pictures for the reader or listener. Effective imagery appeals to all the senses, not just sight.

Eg: The chirp of a cricket lulled me to sleep. The dew on the grass soaked through my shoes Onomatopoeia:

the use of words that sound like what they mean. Eg: whisper, buzz, belch, screech, creak

Assonance: The effect created when words with the same vowel sound are used in close proximity - but where the consonants in these words are different. Eg: 'Green as a dream and deep as death.' Consonance: The effect created when words share the same stressed consonant sounds but where the vowels differ.

Eg: A mime imitated my manner impishly last Monday morning. Alliteration: the repetition of starting sounds in words (usually consonants)

Eg: “The slither of stones, the lone second of silence” Repetition: the repeating of a word, line or verse throughout a poem. Irony: Figure of speech in which the ordinary meaning of the words is more or less the opposite of what the poet intends.