Major Poetic Devices

The poet's distinctive choices in vocabulary. Example: Shakespeare wouldn't say, "Hey, dude;" he would say, "Hello, good fellow."

• Oxymoron

• Metaphor

• Allusion

• Diction

Tags

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RL.11-12.8

CCSS.RL.7.10

CCSS.RL.9-10.10

CCSS.RL.9-10.9

Repeated consonant sounds at the ending of words placed near each other, usually in words placed near each other (should occur in sounds that are accented or stressed).

• Symbolism

• Consonance

• End Rhyme

• Assonance

Tags

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RL.7.10

CCSS.RL.8.10

CCSS.RL.8.5

CCSS.RL.9-10.10

Deliberate repetition of identical or similar vowel sounds. Example: Too sweet to eat and it can't be beat. (The repetition of the "ee" sound)

• Assonance

• Allusion

• Alliteration

• Consonance

Tags

CCSS.RL.11-12.3

CCSS.RL.6.3

CCSS.RL.7.3

CCSS.RL.8.3

CCSS.RL.9-10.3

Applying human characteristics to inanimate objects/inhuman objects. Example: The trees stared into the breeze. The wind whispered softly.

• Internal Rhyme

• Consonance

• Alliteration

• Personification

Tags

CCSS.RL.11-12.3

CCSS.RL.6.3

CCSS.RL.7.3

CCSS.RL.8.3

CCSS.RL.9-10.3

Repetition of a keyword or idea for effect. Example: "Shake it off...shake it off, off, off" (T. Swift)

• Diction

• Metaphor

• Tone

• Echo

Tags

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RL.11-12.8

CCSS.RL.7.10

CCSS.RL.8.5

CCSS.RL.9-10.9

Descriptions of people or objects that relate to the five senses: sight, sound, taste, touch and smell. Language full of imagery appeals to the senses. Example: "Or fester like a sore—and then run? Does it stink like rotten meat?" (from Hughes' "Dream Deferred")

• Rhythm

• Imagery

• Metaphor

• Simile

Tags

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RL.11-12.8

CCSS.RL.7.5

CCSS.RL.8.10

CCSS.RL.9-10.10

Exaggeration for dramatic effect. Example: I have a million papers to grade.

• Assonance

• Oxymoron

• Hyperbole

• End Rhyme

Tags

CCSS.RL.11-12.8

CCSS.RL.7.4

CCSS.RL.7.5

CCSS.RL.8.5

CCSS.RL.9-10.9

Use of words that resemble the sounds they mean Examples: Boom! Bang! Crash!

• Onomatopoeia

• Oxymoron

• Hyperbole

• Internal Rhyme

Tags

CCSS.RL.11-12.3

CCSS.RL.6.3

CCSS.RL.7.3

CCSS.RL.8.3

CCSS.RL.9-10.3

Rhyme in which the rhyming words occur at the ends of lines Example: Roses are red; violets are blue, Sugar is sweet and so are you.

• Internal Rhyme

• Assonance

• End Rhyme

• Metaphor

Tags

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RL.11-12.8

CCSS.RL.7.10

CCSS.RL.7.4

CCSS.RL.7.5

A comparison using "like" or "as." Example: You are as skinny as a rail. You look like a train wreck.

• Diction

• Hyperbole

• Simile

• Oxymoron

Tags

CCSS.RL.11-12.3

CCSS.RL.6.3

CCSS.RL.7.3

CCSS.RL.8.3

CCSS.RL.9-10.3