Poetic Devices

Question 1

Connotation

Answer 1

The thoughts, feelings, meanings we associate with a word.

‘Home’ connotes warmth and comfort.

Question 2

Denotation

Answer 2

The literal, dictionary definition of a word

‘Home’ denotes a place where one lives.

Question 3

Semantic field

Answer 3

A group of words that link to the same topic or theme

The words ‘ocean,’ ‘waves,’ and ‘seashore’ = semantic field of the beach

Question 4

Verb

Answer 4

A doing word, an action, a process or a happening

Danced, live, said, went.

Question 5

Adjective

Answer 5

A describing word

Graceful, peaceful, loud, slow.

Question 6

Pronoun

Answer 6

I, you, he, she, we, they

Question 7

Speaker

Answer 7

The person or thing whose voice, ideas, opinions we hear

It could be the poet, or it could be an object or an animal

Question 8

Message

Answer 8

The poet’s aim - what they want the reader to know

Question 9

Atmosphere

Answer 9

The general feeling, usually created by a place or setting

The setting of an abandoned house may create an eerie atmosphere.

Question 10

Mood

Answer 10

The feelings experienced by the reader

A description of a single house on a rainy day = a melancholic/sad mood.

Question 11

Tone

Answer 11

The writer’s/speaker’s attitude towards the subject being spoken about

A writer’s sarcastic tone can make a text both humorous and critical.

Question 12

Simile

Answer 12

A comparison of two different things using the words “like” or “as.”

Her smile was as bright as the sun.

Question 13

Metaphor
- Direct metaphor
- Implied metaphor

Answer 13

Direct - A comparison that directly states one thing is another. (My brother is a pig.)
Implied - A comparison where the literal thing being compared isn’t mentioned. (The pig ate all of my birthday chocolates.)

Question 14

Personification

Answer 14

A comparison giving human characteristics to nonhuman things.

The wind whispered through the trees.

Question 15

Zoomorphism

Answer 15

A comparison giving animal characteristics to non-animal things.

The politician displayed cunning, fox-like behaviour in the negotiations

Question 16

Alliteration

Answer 16

The repetition of initial consonant sounds in a series of words

He ran rapidly round the racetrack.

Question 17

Onomatopoeia

Answer 17

A sound device using words that imitate the sound they describe

The clock goes ‘tick-tock’ as time passes.
Buzz. Clang.

Question 18

Assonance

Answer 18

A sound device using the repetition of vowel sounds within nearby words

Question 19

Consonance

Answer 19

A sound device using the repetition of consonant sounds within nearby words

Question 20

Sibilance

Answer 20

A sound device using the repetition of sss/shh sounds like “s,” “sh,” or “z” within nearby words

The snake hissed as it slithered through the grass.

Question 21

Stanza

Answer 21

A paragraph in a poem.

Question 22

Repetition

Answer 22

A word or phrase that is repeated - this is usually to emphasise a particular event or feeling.

The ship sunk down, down, down

Question 23

Rhetorical question

Answer 23

A question that is asked to make an audience think, but not expected to answer.

Did you know..? What else could I do?

Question 24

Linking phrases

Answer 24

to emphasise / to show / to imply / to highlight

Use these to explain the effect of the poet’s language and structure

Question 25

Contrast

Answer 25

Placing different/opposite emotions/ideas across a text to highlight differences.

A poem may start negative and then end on a positive note.

Question 26

Juxtaposition

Answer 26

A contrast device placing two or more things side by side to emphasise their similarities or differences.

The vibrant flowers stood before the dull, grey wall.

Question 27

Oxymoron

Answer 27

A figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction

“O loving hate”

Question 28

Abstract Noun

Answer 28

Something you cannot touch, like ‘hate’ ‘love’ ‘fear’

Test if something is a noun by placing ‘the’ or ‘a’ before it.

Question 29

Pathetic fallacy

Answer 29

Using the weather or environment to reflect human feelings.

Question 30

Enjambment

Answer 30

The continuation of a sentence without a pause beyond the end of a line, couplet, or stanza.

Question 31

Caesura

Answer 31

A pause near the middle of a line in a poem. Could be a . - : ;

Question 32

Iambic Pentameter

Answer 32

A line of verse with five metrical feet, each consisting of one short (or unstressed) syllable followed by one long (or stressed) syllable

“Two households, both alike in dignity”