Alliteration: meaning and example sentences. (2023)

CThey areCsickCmarvelous,Cin someCcommandsCin oneRwill comeRof the readerRKnowledge? Knowing how to use alliteration (as shown in the previous sentence) will help you grab the reader's attention more easily.

Alliteration enhances the reading experience in poetry and literature and can even be powerful enough to change your mind.spelbow,spRingspcarvalho

Alliteration is a repetition of consonants at the beginning of several words.

commonly used aspoetic sound device, Alliteration is known as "initial rhyme": the repetition in the reader's (or listener's) ear of an initial sound, instead of the final sound ofFinal.

• Becky's beagle barked and barked, becoming a nuisance to Billy.
• On Friday, Fred's friends baked fresh muffins.
• Kim's son praised Katie's careful kicking.

When a writer usesalliteration in literature, use it asliterary deviceto emphasize an image or a statement. It is pleasing to the ear of the reader, drawing them into the text.

Since alliteration draws the listener in, it is also an important part of persuasive and argumentative writing. Alliteration can act asrhetorical devicewhen a speaker wants to convince his audience of something.

As you read, you may see many different types of alliteration, or a combination of them. As long as you hear the beginning sounds repeated when reading the sentence aloud, it is alliteration. Including:

• Shared letter opening sounds
  (BdisgustingBAdlerBarcade yBmurmur,BarriveBanother forBIlly.)
• Initial sounds of common combined letters
  (OneDeporte.sheepDeporte.educateesFriendsesthat is to sayesCarneeswhich causes itching.)
• Common opening sounds of different letters.
  (kSoykI walkedCfinishedkBehaviorCfullkasco.)

adjacent alliterationIt occurs when all the words in a row have the same initial consonantal sound.

When the non-alliterative words in the sentence stop alliteration, this is known asnon-adjacent alliteration.

empoemsAlliteration can create connections between images or ideas, adding an extra beat to the rhythm of the poem.

Langston Hughes uses alliteration to make the direct comparison between "delayed sleep" and "drought" in his poem "Harlem.“

what happens to aDimageDaffected?
Dand theDget ready
how to act in the sun
(Hughes, "Harlem")

Emily Dickinson uses alliteration to addparallelismand rhythm to the many images in "Cause I couldn't stop for death.“

we passedSschool where childrenSSchatz
NORExcess - noRin g-
We passed the fields ofGRAMSincredibleGRAMSregeneration -
we passedSEssenSmi…
(Dickinson, "Because I Couldn't Stop by Death")

Edgar Allan Poe's use of alliteration adds an element of madness to his story, or a character trying to show in a structured way that he is not mad.revealing Heart,’, whose title also contains alliteration.

oDRelief sharpened my senses - noDdestroyed - notDshe wailed. Above all was the feelingHkeen ear. YoHhear all thingsHheaven and on earth. YoHI listen to many things inHWell.HHow am I crazy?Hregard! and look howHHealthy-HNow I can tell the whole story in peace.
(Poe, "The Tell-Tale Heart")

Martin Luther King Jr. He often used alliteration in his rhetoric to emphasize his words and establish connections between concepts. In his"I have a dream', uses alliteration to connect 'color' with 'content' and 'character'.

I have a dream that one day my four young children will live in a nation where they will not be judged.Cthe smell of your skin, howeverCcontent of yourCCharacter.
(King, "I have a dream")

Winston Churchill used alliteration in his "Let's Fight on the Beaches" speech to incite the British people to action during World War II.

Notice how easily a listener can get carried away with the alliteration of the 's' and 'f' words.

UsSRunner go all the way, weSSalaFflight inFrancid weSSalaFflight inSseas and oceans, weSSalafifight with increasing confidenceSPower in the air, weSWe will defend our island at all costs.SLounge fights on the beaches, weSSalaFFlying at the landing field, weSSalaFflight inFfields and inStrees, weSSalaFflies in the hills; usSrunner neverScapitulate, even if, which I don't believe for a moment, this island or a large part of it wereSheld thereSTarving, so our empire beyond thatSEas, armed and guarded by the British fleet, would continue to do soSfight untilGRAMSoutsideGRAMSgood weather, the new world with all its power and might,SProgress towards the rescue and release of the old.
(Churchill, "Let's Fight on the Beaches")

You don't have to be a literary teacher or a professional speaker to find or use alliteration. All you need is an initial sound to carefully craft creative and charming phrases.

• Can you stop the cat from scratching the sofa? Create chaos.
• Dan's dog dove deep into the dam, drinking dirty water in the process.
• Greedy goats ate gooseberries and became good at collecting the treats.
• Hannah's house has heat now, I hope.
• Hares jump and sway happily.
• Larry's lizard likes to rest on the ground.
• Mike made soft music with his new microphone.
• Nick's nephew needed some new notebooks.
• Peter's little pig hopped around arrogantly.
• Quincy quilters stop quilting fast.
• Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer quickly rose into the air.
• Seven sisters slept soundly in the sand.
• Tim took tons of tools to make toys for the little ones.
• Vivien is very catty and annoying.
• As I walked wearily, I wondered where Wally was.
• Yarvis tugged on her ankle during yoga and Yolanda squealed in surprise.
• Zachary's career was focused on zoo maintenance.

Some of the above sentences may sound likeblock languages.

In fact, tongue twisters often use alliteration (such as "Peter Piper took a pinch of pickled pepper").

Companies constantly use the alliteration effect to help their customers remember their names. The human brain likes alliteration repetition, which makes it easier to memorize.

Think of all the famous and well-known brands and companies that have used alliteration in their names.

• bed bathroom and beyond
• best Buy
• This Chuck E
• Coca Cola
• Dunkin Donuts
• Krispy Kreme
• life lock
• On Lululemon
• Parque
• Paypal

An alliterative name can help you stand out from the crowd and make you more memorable. There are probably some fictional characters or public figures that stand out because of the alliterative effect of their name on your mind.

Examples of famous alliterative names (both real and fictional) include:

• pato donald
• Fred Flintstone
• Jess Jackson
• Katie Couric
• kim kardashian
• lois lane
• luna lovegood
• marilyn monroe
• mickey maus
• Peter Parker
• Ronald Reagan
• Ryan Reynolds
• sammy sosa
• Sponge Bob Square Pants
• Guillermo Wordsworth

Such as alliterative company names and proper names, alliterations in common proverbs andfadshelp make them unforgettable. "Good as rain" is much more fun to say than "Absolutely right!"

• busy as a bee
• dead as a nail
• get your goat
• leave the service
• good as gold
• home Sweet Home
• last laugh
• leave it in hand
• crazy as a running hare
• make a mountain out of a hill
• method to madness
• neck and neck
• shy
• charmed like a punch
• first way
• sure as rain
• drive rough

Bothalliteration and consonanceThey are sound devices that contain repeated consonantal sounds.

The difference is in their placement in a word: alliteration appears on the initial sound of the word, while consonance appears in the middle of the word.

• alliteration -TtheyTyesTigresTballot boxTone andTdisgusting.
• Consonance - Thattto rottand nottthey are grayttand that isttEs.

Assonance refers to the repeated vowels in various words. As with alliteration and consonance, it's easier to find assonance if you read a sentence out loud.

• alliteration -TtheyTyesTigresTballot boxTone andTdisgusting.
• Assonancia - Pleachver cleachcandiessimulatorto the northeachr o pdhregistration nosimulatornorth fdhviejo

All three sound devices often appear together in poetry and other written works.

Master scribes can mix alliteration, consonance, and assonance in ways that are barely noticeable while reading, but the sentence is unforgettable.

Alliterations are easy to spot if you know what to look for, and even easier if you read the sentences out loud.

Can you find the alliteration examples below?