Poetry Terms

The shape or structure of a poem; the way a poem looks on a the page.

• Figurative Language

• Stanza

• Form

• Style

The feeling that a poem creates in the reader.

• Tone

• Mood

• Speaker

• Style

Anything that stands for or represents something else. (peace sign)

• Theme

• Lines

• Tone

• Symbol

A group of lines that usually develop one idea. Poets use stanzas to give their poems structure and to help emphasize different ideas. Stanzas can signal the beginning of a new image, thought, or idea.

• Stanza

• Poem

• Lines

• Form

Central message the poet gives the reader. The theme is the central idea that the writer communicates

(The Message)

• Form

• Title

• Lines

• Theme

Words are used to imitate sounds.

• Repetition

• Onomatopoeia

• Rhyme

• Alliteration

The repeating of a word, sounds, or phrases to add rhythm or focus on an idea.

• Alliteration

• Rhyme

• Rhythm

• Repetition

The repetition of the same or similar sounds at the beginning of words.

• Alliteration

• Rhyme Scheme

• Refrain

• Onomatopoeia

A line or group of lines that is repeated throughout a poem, usually after every stanza.

• Repetition

• Refrain/Chorus

• Stress

• Meter

Language that has meaning beyond the literal meaning: also known as “figures of speech” - you have to figure out the meaning

• Imagery

• Simile

• Figurative Language

• Hyperbole