Poet's Glossary
Every craft has its vocabulary, and poetry's is one of the most beautiful. This glossary explains the forms, meters, rhymes and devices poets reach for, in plain and warm language. Whether you are decoding a sonnet or naming a technique you already use by instinct, start with a letter below.
Terms starting with B
Ballad
A narrative poem that tells a story in short stanzas, often quatrains, and was originally meant to be sung. Ballads favour plain language, dialogue and dramatic events.
Ballade
A French form of three stanzas and a shorter closing envoi, with each stanza ending on the same refrain line. It rewards poets who enjoy strict rhyme and a returning chorus.
Bard
An ancient word for a poet, originally a professional singer who composed and recited heroic verse. Today it survives as an affectionate title, most famously for Shakespeare.
Blank Verse
Unrhymed iambic pentameter. It carries the natural rise and fall of English speech, which is why Shakespeare's plays and Milton's epics are written in it.
Blazon
A poem that praises a beloved by cataloguing their features one by one, comparing eyes, lips and hair to jewels, flowers and stars. Many modern blazons subvert the tradition instead of flattering it.
Broadside
A single sheet on which a poem is printed for public display or cheap sale. Historically the street literature of its day, now a collectible art form.
Burlesque
Verse that treats a serious subject with absurd lightness or a trivial subject with mock grandeur. The mismatch between tone and topic is the joke.
All letters
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