The English language is full of exciting words for poets, but many people fall into the habit of using the same ones over and over again. Here is our top list.
Why write poems? There are many reasons: for self-expression, as a creative outlet, to express your love to another person, or as a hobby. Every word in poetry is important because poems are usually shorter than free verse works. As a poet, it is essential to learn common poetry terms and new and interesting descriptive words to include in your work. Read on to see our guide of helpful words for poetry writing, including technical words and unique descriptive words that will make your writing stand out in the crowd. For more inspiration, check out our list of the best slam poets.
Contents
What Are Words For Poets?
Words for poets include everything from structural and historical poetry terms to descriptive language commonly used in poetry. Learning these essential words and phrases will benefit old and new poets in learning some of the words that make poetry great.
Poetic Words Printable
| Adored | Delight | Hyperbole |
| Alliteration | Didactic | Idyllic |
| Allusion | Dirge | Imagery |
| Ambiguity | Disgust | Imagism |
| Anapest | Dissonance | Intoxicating |
| Anaphora | Doting | Irony |
| Assonance | Dreary | Joviality |
| Ballad | Dull | Joy |
| Beat poets | Earnest | Lush |
| Beatitude | Eclogue | Melancholy |
| Blank verse | Elation | Merriment |
| Bleak | Elision | Mesmerize |
| Bliss | Enchanting | Paradox |
| Blooming | Enchanting | Parody |
| Blue | Enjambment | Passionate |
| Breathtaking | Envoi | Pentameter |
| Caesura | Epic | Personification |
| Canon | Epigraph | Picturesque |
| Carpe diem | Ethereal | Pun |
| Chapbook | Euphoria | Quintain |
| Cherish | Exhilaration | Rhyme |
| Chivalrous | Felicity | Rhythm |
| Cloudy | Ferocity | Scorn |
| Consonance | Flourishing | Seething |
| Contempt | Gaiety | Somber |
| Contentment | Genre | Spite |
| Couplet | Glee | Sun-drenched |
| Crisp | Glorious | Sweeping |
| Dactyl | Grave | Tender |
| Dark | Haiku | Towering |
| Dazzling | Hendecasyllable | Treasure |
| Decasyllable | Hexameter | Vast |
| Delectation | Hilarity | Vivacity |
| Delirium | Hostility | Wrath |
Technical Words for Poets
Technical words for poets include terms that describe a poem’s structure, techniques, and the historical uses of poetry. These words are essential for all poets to understand poetry’s techniques, tone, and structural aspects.
1. Carpe diem
The billionaire attributed her success to her belief in carpe diem, to embrace the pleasure of life and seize the day.
2. Anaphora
A poem with anaphora repeats the same word or phrase at the beginning of each line.
3. Ballad
A ballad is a beautiful way to tell poetic historical folk stories.
4. Beat poets
Beat poets wrote free verse, surrealistic, and jazzy poems in a popular style in the 1950s.
5. Canon
Canon poetry is authentic, often tied to moral or religious principles, making it popular in Christianity.
6. Blank verse
Shakespeare’s infamous use of blank verse, free of rhymes and metered lines.
7. Anapest
Lord Byron’s “The Destruction of Sennacherib” is written with an anapest meter, consisting of two unaccented syllables followed by an accented syllable.
8. Assonance
She recited the poem with beautiful assonance, repeating vowel sounds in her descriptive language.
9. Caesura
The poet created deliberate rhythmic pauses, breaks, cuts, and turns to add dramatic caesura.
10. Chapbook
Sarah wrote a small chapbook of poetry as her first published booklet.
11. Consonance
Using consonance adds emotion and power to words due to the repetition of sounds.
12. Couplet
Stanzas are best kept short and sweet; a two-line couplet is perfect for imagery poems.
13. Dactyl
Elephant is an excellent example of a dactyl, with one stressed syllable followed by two unstressed syllables.
14. Decasyllable
Decasyllable poems consist of ten-syllable metric lines, standard in Italian and French poetry.
15. Didactic
The poet was a moral philosopher and wrote didactic poetry to share her knowledge and views on morality.
16. Dirge
The congregation of the church sang the dirge beautifully.
17. Eclogue
The priest spoke his powerful eclogue, telling the congregation his political and social views through emotive poetry.
18. Epic
Long narrative poems, also known as “epic,” often have heroic protagonists and mythical settings.
19. Alliteration
Alliteration is common in kids’ poetry books to help them learn consonant sounds through repetition.
20. Allusion
The poet used allusion to show the villain’s true intentions.
21. Ambiguity
We could not figure out if she were guilty because of her ambiguity in describing the events.
22. Dissonance
The dissonance in her speech was jarring, a combination of rhythm and sound out of the sink.
23. Elision
In old-style poetry, many poets omit unstressed syllables, also known as elision.
24. Enjambment
Enjambment creates an addictive rhythmic flow evoking passion and emotion in spoken poetry.
25. Envoi
Including an envoi in your ballad can summarize the key points and help listeners better understand your poetry.
26. Epigraph
Including an epigraph in your poem can help readers understand background information not included in the poem itself.
27. Genre
Satire poetry is a genre popular amongst new and creative writers.
28. Haiku (or hokku)
Traditional Japanese Haiku poetry is beautiful and overused to convey love or romance.
29. Hendecasyllable
Writing a hendecasyllable line is challenging because it includes 11 syllables.
30. Hexameter
Poems with 6 metrical feet can be known as a hexameter.
31. Hyperbole
Lee often speaks in hyperbole, so don’t take his exaggerations seriously.
32. Imagery
Poetry with strong imagery created by descriptive language can create a movie in your mind.
33. Imagism
Imagism marked the time period when poetry relied on creating vivid mental images and stories in colloquial language.
34. Irony
The irony of reading political poetry at the socialite event is evident, but Ellie bravely shared her thoughts despite the challenge.
35. Rhythm
The poem’s rhythm had the crowd nodding along with joy and assurance.
36. Rhyme
Some of the most enthralling poems have recurring rhyme throughout the verses.
37. Quintain
Poems composed of five lines or multiple sections with five lines are called quintain.
38. Pun
His jokes included a cheeky pun here and there to add some humor to the dark subject.
39. Personification
With skillful personification, the writer made inanimate objects come to life.
40. Pentameter
A pentameter poem consists of 10 syllables where the first five are stressed and the second five are not stressed.
41. Parody
A poetic parody mimics a specific person with a tongue-in-cheek sense of humor.
42. Paradox
In literature, a paradox is a statement that contradicts itself.
Love Words for Poets
Poetry is a romantic art form often used to convey strong feelings of romantic and platonic love. There are many beautiful words poets can use to describe these strong emotions; we’ll look at some of the top love words below. If you’re looking for famous poets to explore, you might also enjoy our list of famous Irish poets. Or you can also use our search bar to search for many more poems from different poets.
43. Adored
The princess was adored by her loyal subjects.
44. Intoxicating
He had an intoxicating demeanor that no one could resist.
45. Enchanting
Miss Strot spoke with an enchanting voice that captivated her students.
46. Delight
The child would delight at the sight of new toys and animals.
47. Mesmerize
The stunning sunsets in New Zealand would mesmerize anyone who saw them.
48. Treasure
Treasure the people you love; they won’t be around forever.
49. Passionate
They shared a passionate embrace as Stacey’s husband boarded the train to Germany.
50. Tender
A tender moment between lovers can cure even the saddest souls.
51. Doting
A doting husband makes sure his spouse is happy at all times.
52. Chivalrous
The knight was chivalrous and respectful in the presence of the Queen.
53. Cherish
Cherish the moments of silence, as it is a gift to be alive.
Sad Words for Poets
Poetry can be used to convey a feeling of deep sadness within oneself or the world. Therefore, many great poets have turned to writing deep and melancholy poetry in times of trouble. See below some sad words for poets that will convey the true feelings experienced in times of trouble.
Tip: If you want to learn more about writing poetry, check out our guide to metaphor poems! Or you can also use our search bar to search for many more poems from different poets.
54. Bleak
The bleak winter mirrored his dark depression.
55. Dark
A dark soul can be cured only if you are willing to let in some light.
56. Dull
It was a dull conversation, and she couldn’t wait to leave the party.
57. Earnest
With the most earnest smile, the weeping child asked his grandfather for a cuddle.
58. Melancholy
The melancholy sky spoke to her soul; she felt the universe understood her deep sadness.
59. Somber
It was a somber day when Sam cleared out his Father’s old apartment, knowing it was the last day he would be there.
60. Blue
Teenagers often feel blue when their first crush doesn’t like them back, but it will get easier.
61. Cloudy
Her eyes were cloudy with tears as she swallowed her pride and apologized for her actions.
62. Dreary
Dark and dreary times are ahead; the war has just begun.
63. Grave
It is a grave task to combat oncoming battles, but it must be done.
Happy Words for Poets
Poetry can be used to show feelings of pure elation and indescribable happiness. Peruse our happy words that can be used in poetry to describe specific feelings and convey moments of joy.
64. Bliss
Newlywed bliss is a beautiful thing to behold.
65. Contentment
I feel a sense of contentment as I sit by the window in my warm home.
66. Elation
We felt total elation after winning the race.
67. Euphoria
He was in a state of euphoria all night after his big speech.
68. Exhilaration
Setting a world record leaves you with an undeniable feeling of exhilaration.
69. Glee
She was giddy with glee as she opened her birthday present.
70. Joy
My mom brings so much joy into my life.
71. Beatitude
She expressed her beatitude for the beautiful jewelry her partner bought her.
72. Delectation
The bakery owner bakes fresh bread every morning for the delectation of her customers.
73. Delirium
She was in a state of delirium from all the excitement when she fainted.
74. Felicity
I have the felicity to travel and explore new places.
75. Gaiety
Although he means well, there is a forced sense of gaiety and hilarity about his manner.
76. Hilarity
There was much hilarity around dinner time as everyone joked and chatted.
77. Joviality
The host greeted his guests with abundant joviality, which was infectious to be around.
78. Merriment
The festive season is full of merriment and cheer.
79. Vivacity
She was striking, with wonderful vivacity and sprightliness.
Nature Words for Poets
Oftentimes, poetry is used to describe the beauty of the world we live in. Describing nature with beautiful imagery words can be an excellent way to set the scene in a poem. Admiring the beauty of nature is the subject of many wonderful works of poetry. Browse our nature words to build your poetic vocabulary.
80. Blooming
The garden was blooming with beautiful spring flowers.
81. Breathtaking
The views from the top of the mountain were breathtaking.
82. Crisp
The morning air was fresh and crisp.
83. Dazzling
The night sky is dazzling with stars.
84. Enchanting
The enchanting forest is full of lush greenery and vivid flowers.
85. Ethereal
The ethereal palace was glimmering in the sunlight.
86. Flourishing
Flourishing gardens surround the cottage.
87. Glorious
The sunshine was glorious as it beamed through the trees.
88. Idyllic
The hotel was located nearby an idyllic white sand beach.
89. Lush
Lush grass swayed in the breeze while we enjoyed our picnic.
90. Picturesque
The views from the window were picturesque as they looked onto the waterfront.
91. Sun-drenched
The patio was sun-drenched and delightful to bask in.
92. Sweeping
The sweeping fields of golden flowers were dazzling to behold.
93. Towering
Ancient trees were towering over us in the peaceful forest.
94. Vast
The deep ocean is vast and full of mystery.
If you want more words like this, check out our companion articles of other words for happy.
Anger Words for Poets
Words of anger can be used in poetry as an outlet for the most challenging experiences in life. Many poets turn to writing poetic verses to show their anger and contempt for society, personal experiences, grief, and more. Finding the words to express your darkest feelings can be challenging. Discover some specific anger words you can use in your next poem.
95. Disgust
She felt a deep disgust for her ex-partner after how she was treated.
96. Envy
Envy fuelled her desire to win at all costs.
97. Contempt
He showed contempt for billionaires and the greedy actions of his peers.
98. Ferocity
She was kind until you crossed her, then she would show her ferocity and wicked tongue.
99. Hostility
The hotel owner showed hostility towards the rude guests.
100. Scorn
After the split, she treated him with scorn.
101. Spite
The crime was committed out of spite; the only motive was revenge.
102. Wrath
If you fail at this task, you will feel the wrath of your supervisor.
103. Seething
She was seething when the professor embarrassed her in front of the class; she won’t forget this.
To learn more on this topic, check out our round-up of the best poetry books you must read!
