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A narrative in which characters and events represent particular moral, ethical, or political concepts. Origin: From the Greek 'allegoria,' meaning 'veiled language, figurative.'

The repetition of initial consonant sounds in closely positioned words. Origin: Derived from Latin 'ad' (to) + 'littera' (letter).

An indirect reference to a person, event, or piece of literature. Origin: From the Latin 'allusio,' meaning 'a play on words or game.'

An error in chronology, where an object or event is placed in the wrong time period. Origin: From the Greek 'anachronismos,' meaning 'against time.'

Attributing human characteristics to non-human entities. Origin: From the Greek 'anthropos' (human) + 'morphe' (form).

A literary device where two opposite ideas are put together in a sentence to achieve a contrasting effect. Origin: From the Greek 'antitithenai,' meaning 'to oppose.'

A typical example of a certain person or thing in literature. Origin: From the Greek 'archetypon,' meaning 'pattern, model.'

The repetition of vowel sounds in nearby words. Origin: From Latin 'assonantia,' meaning 'sound in answer to' or 'responding to.'

Poetry written in regular metrical but unrhymed lines, almost always iambic pentameter. Origin: Coined during the Renaissance, when poets began writing in the vernacular.

A strong pause within a line of poetry, often marked by punctuation. Origin: Latin for 'cutting' or 'a cutting off.'

The process of releasing strong or repressed emotions through art. Origin: From the Greek 'katharsis,' meaning 'cleansing, purifying.'

The final resolution or clarification of a dramatic or narrative plot. Origin: From the French 'denouer,' meaning 'to untie.'

A plot device where an unsolvable problem is suddenly resolved by an unexpected occurrence. Origin: From the Greek 'apo mechanes theos,' meaning 'the god from the machine,' referring to stage machinery.

An imagined world or society in which people lead dehumanized, fearful lives. Origin: From the Greek 'dys,' meaning 'bad,' and 'topos,' meaning 'place.'

A mournful, melancholic or plaintive poem, especially a funeral song or a lament for the dead. Origin: From the Greek 'elegos,' a song of mourning.

The continuation of a sentence without a pause beyond the end of a line, couplet, or stanza in poetry. Origin: From the French 'enjamber,' meaning 'to straddle.'

A novel or other literary work in the form of letters. Origin: From the Greek 'epistolē,' meaning 'letter.'

A polite or mild word or expression used to replace a harsher, more direct one. Origin: Greek 'euphēmismos,' from 'euphēmos' meaning 'sounding good.'

A literary device in which a writer gives an advance hint of what is to come later in the story. Origin: The term evolved from the Old English 'foresceaduwan,' meaning 'to shadow or screen beforehand.'

Exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally. Origin: From the Greek 'hyperbole,' meaning 'excess.'

The expression of one's meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, often for humorous or emphatic effect. Origin: From the Greek 'eirōneia,' meaning 'dissimulation, ignorance purposely affected.'

The fact of two things being seen or placed close together with contrasting effect. Origin: Latin 'juxtapositio,' from 'juxta' meaning 'next' and 'positio' meaning 'placement.'

A figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable. Origin: From the Greek 'metaphora,' meaning 'to transfer.'

A distinctive feature or dominant idea in an artistic or literary composition. Origin: From the French 'motif,' meaning 'motive' or 'theme.'

A figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction. Origin: From Greek 'oxymoron,' from 'oxys' (sharp) + 'moros' (foolish).

A seemingly absurd or contradictory statement or proposition which, when investigated, may prove to be well-founded or true. Origin: From the Greek 'paradoxon,' meaning 'contrary to expectations.'

The attribution of human feelings and responses to inanimate things or animals, especially in art and literature. Origin: Coined by John Ruskin in 1856 from the Greek 'pathos' (feeling) + 'fallacy.'

The attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to something non-human, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form. Origin: From the Latin 'persona,' meaning 'character' in a drama or 'mask.'

The use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices. Origin: From the Latin 'satura,' meaning 'dish filled with various fruits,' itself from 'satur' (sated).