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Stylistic devices: an overview of rhetorical figures

Benjamin LohrerReviewed by Benjamin Lohrer, editor at corrected.eu · Last updated: 21 July 2026

The compass through all rhetorical devices

Reading time about 6 min. · last updated: 21 July 2026 · to the literary devices

This overview shows the stylistic devices you need to analyse poems, speeches and non-fiction at a glance. Each entry has a short definition, the typical effect and an example from English texts, so that you can recognise a device quickly and use it safely in your own analysis.

What is an overview of stylistic devices for?

Writers use stylistic devices on purpose: to stress a statement, to create a picture in the reader's mind or to steer the reader. Spotting a device is not enough, though. A good analysis names the device correctly, quotes the passage and explains what the device does to the text as a whole.

  • Recognise technical terms in poems, speeches and non-fiction with confidence
  • Find fitting examples for your own analysis
  • Put the effect of a device into precise words

The main devices at a glance

The list below groups the devices you meet most often in exams, essays and theses. Where a device has a German name that differs from the English one, you will find both in the glossary of your course material.

Metaphor
A direct image without "like" or "as". "Time is a thief." Effect: makes an idea concrete.
Simile
A comparison with "like" or "as". "My love is like a red, red rose." (Burns) Effect: clarity and warmth.
Personification
Human traits for things or ideas. "The wind whispered through the trees." Effect: life and mood.
Alliteration
Repeated initial sounds. "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers." Effect: rhythm and memorability.
Assonance
Repeated vowel sounds inside words. "The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain." Effect: musical flow.
Anaphora
Repetition at the start of successive clauses. "We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds." (Churchill) Effect: emphasis and drive.
Hyperbole
Deliberate exaggeration. "I have told you a million times." Effect: strong emphasis or humour.
Understatement
Deliberate downplaying. "It's a bit damp" for a flood. Effect: irony and dry humour.
Irony
Saying one thing and meaning the opposite. "What lovely weather" in a storm. Effect: criticism or wit.
Oxymoron
Two contradictory words side by side. "Deafening silence." Effect: tension.
Antithesis
Contrasting ideas in parallel form. "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." Effect: sharpness.
Rhetorical question
A question asked for effect, not for an answer. "If you prick us, do we not bleed?" (Shakespeare) Effect: involves the audience.
Climax
A rising sequence. "I came, I saw, I conquered." Effect: build-up. The reverse is called anticlimax.
Tricolon
Three parallel items. "Government of the people, by the people, for the people." (Lincoln) Effect: rhythm and completeness.
Asyndeton and polysyndeton
Leaving out or piling up conjunctions. "Veni, vidi, vici" against "and ... and ... and". Effect: speed or weight.
Enjambment
A sentence runs over the end of a line of verse. Effect: flow, surprise, tension between line and sense.
Onomatopoeia
Words that imitate sounds. "Buzz", "hiss", "crash". Effect: vivid sound images.
Synecdoche and metonymy
A part for the whole ("all hands on deck") or an associated thing for the idea ("the Crown" for the monarchy). Effect: compression.
Allegory
A story or image with a second, symbolic meaning, as in Orwell's "Animal Farm". Effect: indirect criticism.

How to use devices in an analysis

An analysis only convinces if you do not just list devices but explain their effect. A reliable pattern has four steps:

  1. Name the device you have found.
  2. Quote the passage.
  3. Place it in its context: where in the text does it stand?
  4. Explain the effect, for example tension, closeness or criticism, and link it to the message of the whole text.

Take an anaphora at the start of several lines. You might write: "The repeated 'I have a dream' (anaphora) hammers the central hope into the listener's mind and gives the speech its rhythm." The sentence names the device, quotes it and states the effect. Avoid vague words such as "nice" or "impressive".

Devices in German texts

Most devices carry the same names in German, because they come from Greek and Latin. Some German terms have become established in school and university usage and are useful if you read German poetry or work with German sources:

Table: German term, English term
German termEnglish termNote
VergleichsimileCompares with "wie" (like, as).
Rhetorische Fragerhetorical questionSame device, same name.
Parataxe / Hypotaxeparataxis / hypotaxisCoordinated against subordinated sentence structure.
ZeilensprungenjambmentAlso called Enjambement in German.
LautmalereionomatopoeiaLiterally "sound painting".

More devices to know

Beyond the main list, these devices appear regularly in longer analyses: apostrophe (addressing an absent person or thing), zeugma (one word governing two others in different senses: "He lost his keys and his temper"), chiasmus (crossed word order: "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country"), litotes (affirming by denying the opposite: "not bad"), euphemism (a mild word for an unpleasant thing), epistrophe (repetition at the end of clauses), cacophony (harsh sounds) and sarcasm (cutting irony).

For the structure of a full essay see writing an essay, for poems poetry analysis, and for the historical setting literary periods. All terms in this area are collected in the literary devices section.

How to cite this page

Updated: 21 July 2026

corrected.eu. (2026, July 21). Stylistic devices: an overview of rhetorical figures. corrected.eu. https://corrected.eu/stylistic-devices

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Frequently asked questions about stylistic devices

What is the difference between a stylistic device and a grammatical term?

A stylistic device is a deliberate choice of form with a particular effect, while a grammatical term only describes the structure of a sentence. A metaphor creates a picture in the reader's mind. A subordinate clause only describes how the sentence is built.

How many devices do I need to know?

For school and first-year study, twenty to thirty common devices are usually enough: metaphor, simile, anaphora, rhetorical question and similar. More important than a long list is naming each device correctly and explaining its effect in context.

Which devices appear most often in poems?

In poems you will often meet metaphor, simile, personification, alliteration and enjambment, because they create pictures and shape the sound of a line. Speeches rely more on anaphora, rhetorical questions and climax, because they are meant to persuade and carry the audience.

How do I spot a device safely in a text?

Read the sentence literally first and ask whether a statement is exaggerated, repeated, shortened or figurative. Then compare the passage with the examples in this overview until you find the matching device.

Is it enough to name a device?

No. Naming earns few marks. What counts is that you explain the effect in the context of the text, that is, why the author chose this device at this point.