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Literature vocabulary · Genres and Forms

Sestina

Meaning in literature, with examples

nounAdvanced term

In literature, sestina means: A poem with six six-line stanzas and a three-line ending, reusing six end words in a set order.

In Turkish: sestina

How it is used

Use for a form built on recurring end words rather than a required rhyme scheme.

Example sentences

  1. The sestina returns to the word 'door' as the family argues about leaving.

    A repeated end word links the formal pattern to the family conflict.

  2. Before writing a sestina, we chose six words that could carry several meanings.

    Flexible end words offer possibilities for repeated use across stanzas.

Common collocations

  • write a sestina
  • sestina end words
  • stanzaA group of lines in a poem, separated from other groups by a space, that works like a paragraph in prose.
  • poemA single piece of writing in lines, often with a regular rhythm or rhyme, that expresses an experience, feeling or idea through carefully chosen language.

More terms: Genres and Forms

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