Friday, September 18, 2020

Improving Style Through Diction, Part 9: Assonance

By repeating the same vowel sounds within words in the same phrase or sentence, assonance creates musicality to a passage. Here are some examples:

  • When the fans deem the Dream Team has run out of steam, it seems they scream louder.
  • All of us were awed by Paula's thoughtful offer.
  • The man who owns the apple stand on Samson Way passed away yesterday, I'm sad to say.

Using assonance at strategic points of a story or essay adds a dash of poetry.