Verse Forms
Common Verse Forms
Friday, December 10, 2010

abecedarian verse (n.)

A type of poem in which (beginning with A) each successive word in the poem begins with the next successive letter in the alphabet.

e.g.:

As Becky cried, darkness eventually fell,
granting her invisibility.
Joy keeps losing momentum:
negative, obscenely probing questions;
repeatedly stating that understanding
vanity was xenophobia,
yielded zero.
— Abecedarius by Jé Maverick

abhanga (n.)

A stanza form originating in India, the abhanga is composed of four lines with lines 2 and 3 rhyming. The first three lines of the stanza each have a count of six syllables, while the final line has a syllable count of four (6,6,6,4).

e.g.:

The chimps ate the garden!
They ate the flowers up.
Lily and buttercup.
Oh, yes they did.
The chimps stole the music.
They danced into the night.
The neighbours are uptight.
Oh, yes they are.
The chimps all have sore guts.
They drank the apple punch.
They drank it all at lunch.
That'll teach 'em.
— Abhanga by Jé Maverick

acrostic (n.)

A verse form, in which the first letter (in descending order) of each line is used to form a message.

e.g.:

**** Coming Soon ****.

double acrostic (n.)

A form of acrostic poem, in which both the first and last letters of each line contribute to form a message.

e.g.:

**** Coming Soon ****.

mesostich (also mesostic) (n.)

A mesostich is a type of acrostic verse in which the middle (or medial) letter of each line, when used together, forms a message.

e.g.:

**** Coming Soon ****.

telestich (n.)

The telestich is a form of acrostic poem in which the final letters of each line, when used together, form a message.

e.g.:

**** Coming Soon ****.

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