Repitition of initial letter in two or more words.

Ex. "Thy tempest-tossed body" - Romeo and Juliet 

Casual reference to a historical or literary figure or event.

Ex. "I know now where is that Promethean heat that can thy light relume" - Shakespeare

False assignment of an event, person, language etc to a time when that event was not in existence.

Ex. Chimneys in Julius Caesar

Comparison of two things by which one unfamiliar object/idea is explained by comparing it with other familiar objects/ideas.

Ex. High school is a prison with teachers are guards and students as prisoners.

Antagonist

(Directly opposed with Protagonist)

The "bad guy" of the story.

Rival, Villain.

Ex. Tybalt

Literary technique where opposite or strongly contrasting statements are balanced against eachother for emphasis. Should be manifested through similar grammatical structure.

Ex. "My only love sprung from my only hate"

Words adressed to an absent person/thing.

Ex. "Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?"

Aside

(Different from Soliloquy)

A remark made by a character in a play which is intended to be heard by the audience but not by the majority of the other characters on the stage.

Ex. "Shall I hear more, or shall I speak at this?"

Assonance

(Opposite of Consonance)

Similarity of sound between vowels, not rhymes.

Fate + Lake

Cacophony

(Opposite of Euphony)

Connotation

(Opposite of Denotation)

Additional, suggested, implied meaning of words. 

Ex. Fat/Curvy

Repeated identical consonant sounds. Final consonants in the stressed syllables agree but the vowels that precede them differ.

Ex. Yellow + Shallow

Denotation

(Opposite of Connotation)

Careful, accurate use of words for a particular meaning to be conveyed.

Four levels: Formal, informal, colloquial, slang

Elision

(Not to be confused with Syncope)

The omission of part of a word for ease of pronunciation, enhance rhythm or sound. Runs two words together.

Ex. the orient = th'orient

One line wraps into another.

Ex.                                           The cow jumped

over the moon.                                           

Adjective or phrase highlighting a characteristic of a person or thing.

Ex. Swift-footed Achilles, Fiery Tybalt

Euphony

(Opposite of Cacophony)

Category of a literary work. 

(Ex. Tragedy, Comedy)

"Tragic Flaw"

A weakness leading to the downfall of a hero, like Achilles' heel.

Figure of speech containing an exaggeration for emphasis.

Ex. "There is no world without Verona walls, 

But purgatory, torture, hell itself."

Figurative language to enrich poetry, always applying another literary device.

Ex. "What you are saying is unpleasant" is the boring way of saying it.

"These words are razors to my wounded heart" is the cool imagery way to say it :D (by employing a metaphor)

Recurring theme

(Leading Motive)

Ex. Haste/Love in Romeo and Juliet

Name of something is replaced with the name of something that is closely associated.

Ex. Heart of stone

The use of words in which the sense is suggested by the sound.

Ex. Hiss, Buzz, Drip

Oxymoron

(Not to be confused with Paradox)

A phrase bringing two incongruous and apparently contradictory terms together.

Ex. Sounds of Silence, Wise Fool.

Paradox

(Not to be confused with Oxymoron)

A statement that seems contradictory and yet is true.

Ex. "In my beginning is my end..."

Attributing human passion to inanimate things, like weather. A type of personification.

Ex. Bad day = rainy day.

Figure of speech that endows animals, inanimate objects and ideas with human form, personality or feelings.

Ex. "When but love's shadows are so rich in joy"

Protagonist

(Opposite of Antagonist)

Hero of the story.

The good guy.

Play on words based on the similarity of sound between two words with different meanings. Often intended to be humourous.

Ex. "Ask for me tomorrow and you will find me a grave man" as he is dying. Ahahahaahaaaaaaaa.

Figure of speech comparing two things using the words "like" or "as"
Ex. "Death lies on her like an untimely frost

Upon the sweetest flower of all the field."

Soliloquy

(Not to be confused with Aside)

Syncope

(Not to be confused with Elision)

Cutting short of words through the omission of a letter or syllable.

Ex. Overcovered = O'ercovered

An object which represents something else.

Ex. "It was the nightingale, and not the lark."

Form of metaphor in which the part mentioned signifies the whole.

Ex. "All hands on deck."

Character whose actions or qualities make him/her appear as a representative of a class or type.

Ex. Romeo is a Lover.

Opposite of a hyperbole. Ironic intention. Something that is represented as less that it is in fact.

Ex. Mercution refers to his fatal wound as "a scratch".