Senior Paper 1 ~ Poetry Terminology

First and Second “T” in TPFASSTT

“P” in TPFASSTT (you are encouraged to skip this one for the exam)

“F” in TPFASSTT

“A” in TPFASSTT. Also referred to as tone

First “S” in TPFASSTT

Second “S” in TPFASSTT

Last “T” in TPFASSTT

Close repetition of similar vowels in conjunction with dissimilar consonant sounds, as in the phrase tilting at windmills, where the short “i” sound is similar

Verse of unrhymed lines of iambic pentameter (5 iambs of unstressed-stressed: U / U / U / U / U / ) such as in Shakespeare’s plays. It is believed to be the poetic pattern closest to natural speech.

Pause in a poetic line, usually denoted by punctuation such as a semicolon or comma. Have degrees of strength, and when scanning a line of poetry are denoted with a double bar: Lose something every day. || Accept the fluster / of lost door keys.

Repetition of consonant sounds in conjunction with dissimilar vowel sounds, as in blank-think, strong-string, fair-fear.

Rhyming words that repeat at the end of lines.

Continuation of grammatical structure in a poem beyond the end of a line, couplet, or stanza and into the next. Also called run-on line. Does she not seem / to insignificant for our concern? This is the opposite of an end-stopped line, where the natural grammatical pause coincides with the end of a line (via comma or semicolon).

Rhyme in which words have identical sounds: dear / sneer, light / night. Also called perfect or full rhyme. Contrast with eye rhyme and slant rhyme.

Rhyme that gives the impression of exact rhyme by its appearance, but the words do not have identical sounds: come/home, forth/worth, prove/love, rain/again. See half rhyme and slant rhyme. Contrast with exact rhyme.

Unit of rhythm in a poetic line: long/short, stressed/unstressed. “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud” uses tetrameter (four feet per line).

One foot per line.

Two feet per line.

Three feet per line.

Four feet per line.

Five feet per line.

Six feet per line.

Seven feet per line.

Eight feet per line.

Poetic line of five iambs. Common in English poetry.

Verse with no regular meter or line length and depends on natural speech’s rhythms.

Rhyme that relies on consonance of the final consonants of words, which may be deliberate or due to lack of skill. Soul/all, bodies/ladies, ill/shell. Also called sprung or near rhyme. See eye rhyme and slant rhyme. Contrasts with exact rhyme.

Poetry in which the poet expresses personal thoughts and feelings, having the form and qualities of a song.

Pattern of stressed / and unstressed U syllables.

Lyric poem that honors something (often an everyday object) through a stately tone and style.

Having flowing pleasant sounds, usually produced by vowels.

Having harsh, discordant sounds.

Use of long vowel sounds, as in coat O, hide I, and short vowel sounds as in off o and insect i

Use of two consonants in a row: parallel, kennel, swelling

Use of T, TH, D, N, and L: thing, dog, love, no

Leaving out an unstressed syllable or vowel to keep the meter of a poetic line regular: over vs. o’er

Use of F, Z, and S: fee, suit, zoo

Use of P, D, T: tap, debt

Subset of fricative sounds. Using hissing sounds from S, SH, Z, and sometimes C: sun, cent, scent

Liberty allowed to the poet to work or even distort the language according to their needs.

Fixed form, structure, and pattern such as rhyme, line length, and meter. Sonnets and villanelles are examples.

Lacks regularity and consistency in form and structure.

Phrase, line, or lines repeated at intervals during a poem or narrative.

Analysis of verse into metrical patterns.

Rhyme that is not true, either deliberately or due to lack of skill. Other/powder. Compare to eye rhyme and half rhyme. Contrast with exact rhyme

14-line verse form usually using iambic pentameter and having a conventional rhyme scheme.

Having three quatrains and a couplet, with the rhyme scheme of ABAB CDCD EFEF GG

Three quatrians and a couplet, but with the rhyme scheme ABAB BCBC CDCD EE

Having an octave, then a sestet with the rhyme scheme ABBAABBA then ending in CDECDE OR CDCDCD. First octave usually present a thought, picture, or emoton. Final sestet presents an explanation, comment, or summary.

Stanza or poem of 2 lines

Stanza or poem of 3 lines

Stanza or poem of 4 lines

Stanza or poem of 5 lines

Stanza or poem of 6 lines

Stanza or poem of 7 lines

Stanza or poem of 8 lines

Poetry having 5 tercets and a final quatrain: 19 lines total. The first and third lines of the first tercet recur alternately in the following stanzas as a refrain and form a final couplet, creating the rhyme scheme ABA, ABA, ABA, ABA, ABAA.

Full order of TPFASSTT (separate with commas, all singular)