Hyperbole

Extreme exaggeration.

Iambic Pentameter

Five pairs of unstressed and stressed beats in a line.

Imagery

Words that create pictures in your mind.

In medias res

Starting a story in the middle of action.

Interior Monologue

A character’s thoughts written out.

Internal Rhyme

Rhyme within one line.

Inversion

Reversing normal word order.

Italian Sonnet

14-line poem with two parts: 8 and 6 lines.

Litotes

Saying something by denying its opposite (“not bad”).

Lyric

Short poem showing feelings.

Metamorphosis

A big change or transformation.

Metaphor

Comparing two things without “like” or “as.”

Meter

Rhythm pattern in poetry.

Metonymy

Using a related word to stand for something (“the crown” for king).

Myth

An old story explaining nature or culture.

Narrative

A story or account of events.

Near/Off/Slant Rhyme

Almost rhyming words.

Onomatopoeia

Words that sound like what they mean (“buzz”).

Oxymoron

Two opposite words together (“jumbo shrimp”).

Parable

Story teaching a moral lesson.