poetic device: Alliteration

Alliteration is not when words start with the same letter but, rather, when the first stressed (or accented) syllable of two nearby words begin with the same consonant sound. This means that there are basically three types of alliterations:

  1. When nearby words start with the same consonants and the same sounds, such as “dancing dogs”, or “big boys.”
  2. When nearby words start with different consonants but the same sounds, such as “cats and kittens” or “jungle gym.”
  3. When nearby words start with different sounds, but have the same sounds at the beginning of their first stressed syllable, such as “normal banana” (which each have an “n” sound on the first stressed syllable) or “regular karate” (which each have an “r” sound on the first stressed syllable).

These poems include alliterations. Some may have just a single alliteration within the poem, while others may include dozens of alliterations.

Our Classroom Is Covered in Sparkles
Halloween is Nearly Here
Waiter, There’s a Dog in My Soup
The Seefood Diet
My Pig Won’t Let Me Watch TV
Zzzzz by Kenn Nesbitt
Zzzzz
Rosy the Dozer
Fancy Dancer by Kenn Nesbitt
Fancy Dancer
Somewhere Sometime by Kenn Nesbitt
Somewhere Sometime
My Puppy Makes Pizza
I Bought a New Banana Suit
The Lamps Were All Delighted by Kenn Nesbitt
The Lamps Were All Delighted
Morning Sports
My Dog Likes to Disco
My Baby Brother’s Birthday
Snow Mail by Kenn Nesbitt
Snow Mail
I Saw a Sloth Play Soccer
My Penmanship Is Pretty Bad by Kenn Nesbitt
My Penmanship Is Pretty Bad
My Favorite Food Is Broccoli
Digging for Diamonds by Kenn Nesbitt
Digging for Diamonds
The Candy Cane Collector
I Love to Read a Mystery by Kenn Nesbitt
I Love to Read a Mystery
Moving to China
My Parents Sent Me To the Store