Alliteration
The repetition of an initial consonant sound across nearby words.
Alliteration is the repetition of an initial consonant sound across two or more nearby words: 'wild and woolly', 'rough and ready', 'sweet smell of success'. It is one of the oldest poetic devices in the English tradition — Old English verse was structured around it before it was structured around rhyme.
In modern prose, alliteration is the cheapest way to make a phrase memorable, which is why it dominates brand names, headlines, and political slogans. 'Build Back Better.' 'Make America Move.' Whether the policy is good is a separate question; the line will stick.
Heavy alliteration in serious prose reads as showy. A light touch — one or two repeated sounds in a long sentence — gives the line shape without drawing attention to itself.
“Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.”
Keep reading the glossary
The deliberate repetition of a word or phrase at the start of successive clauses.
The art of persuasive speaking and writing — the discipline behind every great quoted line.
A short, vivid extract from a longer speech, designed to be repeated by news media.
Aristotle's three modes of persuasion — character, emotion, and reason.