Alliteration

What is alliteration?

Alliteration is the repetition of the same beginning consonant sound in words that are close together.

• Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
• Sally sells seashells by the seashore.
• Big brown bears bounced on bouncy beds.

Say them aloud. Can you hear the same sound bouncing again and again? That is alliteration!

Alliteration is a sound device, a technique writers use to play with the sounds of words.

It’s about the sound, not the letter

Alliteration depends on the sound, not just the letter.

• The cat kept coming. ✓ (c and k both make the /k/ sound)
• Phil’s funny fish. ✓ (ph and f both make the /f/ sound)
• City cats ✗ (the c in city says /s/, but the c in cats says /k/)

The repeated sounds usually come at the beginning of words, and the words should be close together, often in the same line or sentence. Small words like a, the and of can come in between.

Why writers use alliteration

Alliteration can:

• Make writing fun to read aloud. It has a bouncy, musical rhythm.
• Make phrases memorable. That is why many brands and characters use it: Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Coca-Cola, PayPal.
• Create a mood. Soft sounds like s can feel calm or sneaky. Hard sounds like b, d, k and t can feel strong or harsh.
• Draw attention to important words.
• Make tongue twisters! A tongue twister uses alliteration to make a phrase hard to say quickly.

Sounds create feelings

Different sounds can create different moods:

Alliteration everywhere

You can find alliteration in:

• Poems and songs: Twinkle, twinkle, little star.
• Picture books: many children’s books use it for fun.
• Names: Peter Parker, Bugs Bunny, Wonder Woman.
• Headlines: Hockey Heroes Head Home Happy.
• Advertising: Fresh, fast and friendly!
• Sayings: busy as a bee, right as rain, home sweet home.

Alliteration and assonance

Alliteration repeats consonant sounds at the beginning of words.
Assonance repeats vowel sounds inside words.

• Alliteration: five frantic frogs
• Assonance: the rain in Spain stays mainly…

Both are sound devices that make writing musical.

Alliteration in poems

Poets love alliteration because poems are meant to be heard. Read this short made-up poem aloud:

Frosty fingers fill the field,
Silver sparkles, softly sealed.
Winter whispers, wild and white,
Stars stand still through the starry night.

Each line repeats a sound: /f/, /s/, /w/ and /st/. The repeated sounds tie each line together and give the poem a gentle, musical beat. When you read poetry, try tapping your finger each time you hear a repeated beginning sound.

How to find alliteration

1. Read the sentence aloud.
2. Listen for repeated beginning sounds.
3. Check that the words are close together.
4. Make sure it is the same sound, not just the same letter.

How to write alliteration

1. Choose a subject. A dog.
2. Pick a starting sound. /d/
3. Brainstorm words with that sound. dancing, dizzy, dashing, daring, delightful, dirt, digging, door
4. Build a phrase or sentence. The daring dog dashed through the dirt, digging for dinner.
5. Read it aloud. Does it flow? Is it fun? Does it still make sense?

Tip: do not overdo it

A little alliteration adds sparkle. Too much can sound silly or make your writing hard to read, unless you are writing a tongue twister on purpose!

Common mistakes

• Counting letters instead of sounds. Knight starts with an /n/ sound, not /k/.
• Words too far apart. If the matching sounds are separated by a long sentence, it is not really alliteration.
• Forgetting meaning. The sentence still needs to make sense.

Try it yourself

1. Find the alliteration: Wild winds whipped through the willow trees.
2. Is this alliteration? Giant gentle giraffes. (Hint: listen to the sounds.)
3. Write an alliterative name for a superhero.
4. Write a tongue twister using the /t/ sound.
5. What mood does this sentence create? Soft snow settled silently on the sleeping city.

Answers: 1. Wild winds whipped … willow (/w/). 2. Yes; all three start with the soft g /j/ sound. 3. Example: Captain Comet or Mighty Mira. 4. Example: Tiny Tim took ten tasty tacos to Toronto. 5. Calm, quiet and peaceful.

Study tip

Write your name with an alliterative adjective in front of it, like Marvellous Maya or Brave Ben. Then try it for everyone in your family. It is a fun way to practise hearing beginning sounds.

Quick recap

• Alliteration repeats the same beginning consonant sound in nearby words.
• It depends on sound, not just letters.
• It makes writing musical, memorable and full of mood.
• Assonance repeats vowel sounds; alliteration repeats beginning consonant sounds.
• Use alliteration to add sparkle, but do not overdo it.