Poetry Glossary - Understand Poetry Terms

Term	Definition	Example
Tail Rhyme	A rhyme at the end of a short line that is followed by a longer line, commonly found in certain ballads and hymns.	The poem’s tail rhyme added a musical quality to the narrative.
Tapinosis	A rhetorical device that involves the use of demeaning or belittling language, often for ironic effect.	The poet’s use of tapinosis highlighted the disparity between appearance and reality.
Tautology	The repetition of an idea or statement using different but equivalent words; a redundancy in poetry.	The poet’s tautology emphasized the inescapable truth of the situation.
Teleutons	The final words or syllables in a line of verse, particularly when they form a rhyme or contribute to the poem’s meter.	The teleutons in the poem created a rhythmic closure to each stanza.
Tercet	A group of three lines of verse, often rhyming together or connected by rhyme with an adjacent tercet.	The second and fourth stanzas of "Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night" by Dylan Thomas are tercets.
Tmesis	A figure of speech in which a word or phrase is separated into two parts, with an intervening word or phrase inserted in between.	The poet’s clever use of tmesis disrupted the flow, making the reader pause and think.
Tmesis	A figure of speech in which a word or phrase is separated into two parts, with an intervening word or phrase inserted in between.	The poet’s clever use of tmesis disrupted the flow, making the reader pause and think.
Tmesis	A figure of speech in which a word is split into two parts, with other words inserted between them.	Inserting words into phrases, as in abso-bloody-lutely, is an example of tmesis in poetry.
Tone	The general attitude or mood conveyed by a poem, which can be influenced by diction, syntax, and other stylistic choices.	The poem’s tone shifted from hopeful to melancholic as it progressed.
Topos	A traditional theme or motif in literature and rhetoric, often used as a recurring element in poetry.	The poet explored the topos of carpe diem, urging readers to seize the day.

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.