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.

My Mother Makes Prickly Pear Pastries by Kenn Nesbitt
My Mother Makes Prickly Pear Pastries
Bradley Beard by Kenn Nesbitt
Bradley Beard is Rather Weird
Pete the Pirate Wannabe by Kenn Nesbitt
Pete the Pirate Wannabe
The Horsemen Are Headless this Evening by Kenn Nesbitt
The Horsemen Are Headless this Evening
Jake the Yo-Yo Maker
Floyd the Coin Collector
Belinda’s an Expert at Bathing
Lucky Lou by Kenn Nesbitt
Lucky Lou
If You Ever Meet an Elephant
Boney Mahoney
Veronica Ving
Veronica Ving
Molly Has a Myna Bird by Kenn Nesbitt
Molly Has a Myna Bird
Dexter McDwyer by Kenn Nesbitt
Dexter McDwyer
Sailing Off to Singapore by Kenn Nesbitt
Sailing Off to Singapore
Nile and Nate
Finnegan Flannigan Fox by Kenn Nesbitt
Finnegan Flanagan Fox
If You Happen to Hop by Kenn Nesbitt
If You Happen to Hop
Ebb and Flo by Kenn Nesbitt
Eb and Flo