ALLEGORY

A PROLONGED METAPHOR

ALLITERATION

DELIBERATE REPETITION OF SOUNDS, ESPECIALLY INITIAL CONSONANT SOUNDS, IN SUCCESSIVE WORDS FOR MUSICAL AND OCCASIONALLY ONOMATOPOETIC EFFECT

ANAPHORA

REPETITION OF WORDS OR PHRASES FOR EMPHASIS; OFTEN USED WITH ASYNDETON

ANASTROPHE

THE REVERSAL OF NORMAL WORD ORDER, AS WITH A PREPOSITION FOLLOWING ITS OBJECT OR A DELAYED CONJUNCTION, OFTEN WITH THE EFFECT OF EMPHASIZING THE WORD (S) PLACED EARLIER

APOSIOPESIS

A DRAMATIC INTERRUPTION IN MID-SENTENCE

APOSTROPHE

ADDRESS TO SOME PERSON OR THING NOT PRESENT, USUALLY FOR EMOTIONAL EFFECT

ASSONANCE

REPETITION OF VOWEL OR SYLLABLE SOUNDS IN SUCCESSIVE WORDS, FOR MUSICAL ( AND SOMETIMES ONOMATOPOETIC) EFFECT

ASYNDETON

OMISSION OF CONJUNCTIONS WHERE ONE OR MORE WOULD ORDINARILY BE EXPECTED IN A SERIES OF WORDS OR PHRASES; OFTEN EMPLOYED IN CONNECTION WITH ANAPHORA AND UNDERSCORING THE WORD IN THE SERIES

BUCOLIC DIAERESIS

AN EMPHATIC PAUSE BETWEEN WORDS BETWEEN THE FOURTH AND FIFTH FEET, RELATIVELY UNCOMMON IN VERGIL AND GENERALLY USED TO EPHASIZE THE WORD IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING OR FOLLOWING

CAESURA

A PAUSE BETWEEN WORDS OCCURRING WITHIN A METRICAL FOOT; THE EFFECT AT THE PRINCIPAL CAESURA IN A LINE OF VERSE

CHIASMUS

ARRANGEMENT OF WORDS OR PHRASES IN AN OPPOSITIONAL ABBA ORDER OFTEN TO EMPHASIZE SOME CONTRAST OR TO CREATE A WORD-PICTURE

DACTYL

A METRICAL FOOT MADE UP OF ONE LONG SYLLABLE FOLLOWED BY TWO SHORTS; A SERIES OF DACTYLS IS SOMETIMES USED TO SUGGEST RAPID, ABRUPT, OR VIOLENT ACTION

_ UU

DIAERESIS

A PAUSE BETWEEN WORDS COINCIDING WITH THE END OF A METRICAL FOOT, LESS COMMON THAN CAESURA AND SOMETIMES EMPLOYED TO EMPHASIZE THE WORD IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING OR FOLLOWING

DIASTOLE

LENGTHENING OF AN ORDINARILY SHORT VOWEL ( HENCE THE SYLLABLE CONTAINING IT), USUALLY WHEN IT OCCURS UNDER THE ICTUS AND BEFORE A CAESURA; SOMETIMES REFLECTING IN ARCHAIC PRONUNCIATION

ECPHRASIS

A DIGRESSION FROM THE MAIN NARRATIVE BUT GENERALLY CONNECTING TO IT THEMATICALLY AND SOMETIMES DESCRIBING A PAINTING OR OTHER PICTORIAL REPRESENTATION

ELISION

SUPPRESSION OR CONTRACTION OF A VOWEL ( OR VOWEL PLUS -M) OR DIPHTHONG AT THE END OF A WORD BEFORE A WORD BEGINNING WITH A VOWEL OR A DIPHTHING ( OR WITH H-PLUS A VOWEL OR DIPHTHONG

ELIPSIS

OMISSION OF ONE OR MORE WORDS NECESSARY TO THE SENSE OF A SENTENCE BUT EASILY UNDERSTOOD FROM THE CONTEXT; OFTEN A FORM OF THE VERB SUM OR A SPEECH VERB

ENJAMBEMENT

DELAY OF THE FINAL WORD OR PHRASE OF A SENTENCE ( OR CLAUSE) TO THE BEGINNING OF THE FOLLOWING VERSE, TO EMPHASIZE AN IDEA OR IMAGE OR TO CREATE SUSPENSE

FRAMING

ENCLOSURE OF A LINE OF VERSE BY PLACING TWO CLOSELY CONNECTED WORDS, OFTEN A NOUN AND MODIFYING ADJECTIVE, AT THE BEGINNING AND END

GOLDEN LINE

HENDIADYS

USE OF TWO NOUNS CONNECTED BY A CONJUNCTION ( OR OCCASIONALLY A PREPOSITION), OFTEN INSTEAD OF ONE MODIFIED NOUN EXPRESSING A SINGLE COMPLEX IDEA

HIATUS

LACK OF ELISION WHERE TWO SYLLABLES WOULD ORDINARILY BE ELIDED, USUALLY USED FOR EMPHASIS AT THE END OF A CLAUSE

HYPERBOLE

EMPHATIC OVERSTATEMENT OF A POINT OR A DESCTIPTION

HYPERMETRIC LINE

A LINE OF VERSE WITH AN EXTRA SYLLABLE AT THE END WHICH ELIDES WITH THE FIRST SYLLABLE OF THE FOLLOWING VERSE

HYSTERON PROTERON

DESCRIPTION OF EVENTS IN AN ORDER REVERSING THEIR LOGICAL SEQUENCE

ICTUS

INTERLOCKED WORD ORDER ( SYNCHYSIS)

ARRANGEMENT OF RELATED PAIRS OF WORDS IN AN ALTERNATING ABAB PATTERN

IRONY

USE OF LANGUAGE WITH A MEANING OPPOSITE THAT SUGGESTED BY THE CONTEXT

LITOTES

A FORM OF DELIBERATE UNDERSTATEMENT, GENERALLY WITH A SOFTENING EFFECT AND OFTEN ACHIEVED THROUGH DESCRIBING ONE QUALITY BY DENYING ITS OPPOSITE

METAPHOR

AN IMPLIED COMPARISON, USING ONE WORD FOR ANOTHER THAT IT SUGGESTS USUALLY WITH A VISUAL EFFECT

METONYMY

A TYPE OF IMAGERY IN WHICH ONE WORD, GENERALLY A NOUN, IS USED TO SUGGEST ANOTHER NOUN WITH WHICH IT IS CLOSELY RELATED

ONOMATOPOEIA

USE OF WORDS WHOSE SOUNDS SUGGEST THEIR MEANING OR THE GENERAL MEANING OF THEIR IMMEDIATE CONTEXT

PERSONIFICATION

A TYPE OF IMAGERY BY WHICH HUMAN TRAITS ARE GIVEN TO PLANTS, ANIMALS, INANIMATE OBJECTS, OR ABSTRACT IDEAS

POLYSYNDETON

USE OF A GREATER NUMBER OF CONJUNCTIONS THAN USUAL OR NECESSARY, OFTEN TO EMPHASIZE THE ELEMENTS IN A SERIES

PRAETERITIO

SUGGESTING THAT ONE WILL PASS OVER A TOPIC AND THEN GOING ON TO MENTION IT

PROLEPSIS

ATTRIBUTION OF SOME CHARACTERISTIC TO A PERSON OR THING BEFORE IT IS LOGICALLY APPROPRIATE, ESPECIALLY APPLICATION OF A QUALITY TO A NOUN BEFORE THE ACTION OF THE VERB HAS RESULTED IN THAT QUALITY

RHETORICAL QUESTION

A QUESTION THAT IS POSED BY A SPEAKER BUT IN FACT EXPECTS NO ANSWER, OFTEN EXCLAMATORY OR TO INDICATE INDIGNATION

SIMILE

 AN EXPLICIT COMPARISON OFTEN (INTRODUCED BY UT, VELUT, QUALIS, CEU, OR SIMILIS )BETWEEN ONE PERSON OR THING AND ANOTHER

SPONDEE

A METRICAL FOOT MADE UP OF TWO LONG SYLLABLES; A SERIES OF THESE IN A DACTYLIC HEXAMETER LINE IS SOMETIMES USED FOR EMPHASIS OR TO SUGGEST SLOW OR PONDEROUS OR SOLEMN ACTION

EG: - -

SYNCOPE

OMISSION OF A SHORT, UNACCENTED VOWEL, REFLECTING CONTRACTIONS COMMON IN DAILY SPEECH AND OFTEN EMPLOYED IN POETRY FOR METRICAL CONVENIENCE

SYNECDOCHE

A TYPE OF METONYMY IN WHICH A PART IS NAMED IN PLACE OF AN ENTIRE OBJECT, OR A METERIAL FOR A THING MADE OF THAT MATERIAL, OR AN INDIVIDUAL IN PLACE OF A CLASS

SYNIZESIS

THE RUNNING TOGETHER OR CONTRACTION OF TWO VOWELS INTO A SINGLE SYLLABLE OFTEN TREATING THE VOWELS I AND U AS CONSONANTS

SYSTOLE

SHORTENING OF A VOWEL WHICH WAS ORDINARILY LONG, SOMETIMES REFLECTING AN ARCHAIC PRONUNCIAITON, AND NOT ORDINARILY OCCURRING WHEN THE SYLLABLE CONTAINING THE VOWEL WAS UNDER THE ICTUS

TMESIS

SEPARATION OF A COMPOUND WORD INTO ITS CONSTITUENT PARTS, GENERALLY FOR METRICAL CONVENIENCE

TRANSFERRED EPITHET

APPLICATION OF AN ADJECTIVE TO ONE NOUN WHEN IT PROPERLY APPLIES TO ANOTHER, OFTEN INVOLVING PERSONIFICATION AND FOCUSING SPECIAL ATTENTION ON THE MODIFIED NOUN

TRICOLON CRESCENS

A CLIMACTIC SERIES OF THREE OR MORE EXAMPLES OR ILLUSTRATION, EACH OR AT LEAST THE LAST MORE FULLY DEVELOPED THAN THE PRECEDING

WORD-PICTURE

A TYPE OF IMAGERY IN WHICH THE WORDS OF A PHRASE ARE ARRANGED IN AN ORDER THAT VISUALLY SUGGESTS THE IMAGE BEING DESCRIBED

ZEUGMA

USE OF A SINGLE WORD WITH A PAIR OF OTHERS (E.G., A VERB WITH TWO OBJECTS, AN ADJECTIVE WITH TWO NOUNS), WHEN IT LOGICALLY APPLIES TO ONLY ONE OF THEM OR APPLIES TO THEM BOTH, BUT IN TWO QUITE DIFFERENT WAY