Poetry Glossary - Understand Poetry Terms

Term	Definition	Example
Qawwali	A form of devotional Sufi music, often featuring poetic lyrics that focus on love, devotion, and the divine, traditionally performed in South Asia.	The poet’s verses were set to qawwali, their spiritual themes resonating with the audience.
Quaint	Attractively unusual or old-fashioned, a term often used to describe the charm of a poem that evokes nostalgia or simplicity.	The poet’s quaint verses harkened back to a simpler time, each word a step into the past.
Quandary	A state of uncertainty or perplexity, often used in poetry to describe a character’s inner conflict or a difficult situation.	The poet’s verse captured the protagonist’s quandary, torn between love and duty.
Quantum Poetry	A contemporary movement or style that explores the intersection of science, particularly quantum physics, and poetry, often focusing on themes of uncertainty, complexity, and the nature of reality.	The poet’s quantum poetry challenged readers to think about the nature of reality and perception.
Quatrain	A stanza of four lines, often with alternating rhymes.	The most common rhyme scheme for a quatrain is ABAB, as seen in many of Emily Dickinson's poems.
Queneau, Raymond	A French poet and novelist known for his experimental use of language and form, often cited in discussions of 20th-century literary innovation.	The poet’s playful use of language was inspired by the works of Raymond Queneau, pushing the boundaries of traditional verse.
Querelle des Anciens et des Modernes	A literary and artistic debate that took place in the late 17th century, particularly in France, over the relative merits of classical (ancient) and contemporary (modern) art and literature.	The poet’s work was influenced by the querelle des anciens et des modernes, blending classical forms with modern themes.
Querencia	A term from bullfighting, referring to the spot in the arena where the bull feels most secure and in control; in poetry, it can symbolize a place of refuge or strength.	The poet’s querencia was found in nature, where the verses breathed life into the serene landscape.
Quibble	A play on words, often involving a pun or a subtle twist in meaning, used in poetry and rhetoric to create humor or a double entendre.	The poet’s quibble in the final line left readers smiling at the clever twist of meaning.
Quid Pro Quo	A Latin phrase meaning "something for something," used to describe an exchange or a mutual agreement, sometimes explored in poetry as a theme of reciprocity or balance.	The poet’s reflection on love as a quid pro quo challenged the notion of unconditional affection.

Our comprehensive Poetry Glossary, designed for students, teachers, and poetry enthusiasts alike. Whether you're delving into poetic forms, exploring rhyme schemes, or understanding the nuances of metrical feet, our glossary is an essential resource to enhance your study of poetry.

Our glossary covers a wide range of poetry terms, from alliteration, the repetition of initial consonant sounds, to the structure of free verse, which flows without a fixed metrical pattern. Learn about how stressed and unstressed syllables form the foundation of metrical feet, or explore how a rhyme scheme organizes the pattern of sounds at the end of lines in a poem.

Use the search function to quickly find terms like group of lines in a stanza or the repetition of sounds in a poem or section. Whether you're looking to understand how a series of words creates rhythmic patterns or how the number of syllables affects the flow of a line of poetry, our glossary has the definitions and examples you need.