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Word repetition

Device
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Deliberate repetition of words or phrases for emphasis, rhythm, or thematic reinforcement

Detailed Definition
Word repetition: The deliberate reuse of identical words in poetry for emphasis, structure, rhythm, or thematic development, including anaphora, epistrophe, and various other repetition schemes. Word repetition creates cohesion, builds intensity, and establishes patterns that shape reader expectations. While sometimes criticized as redundant, strategic repetition serves crucial functions in creating emphasis, rhythm, and structure. Understanding word repetition reveals how recurrence generates meaning through accumulation and pattern, making repetition itself an expressive device rather than mere redundancy, with repeated words gaining significance through reappearance.
Example
Example in poetry:
Word repetition appears in Ginsberg’s “Howl”: “who poverty and tatters and hollow-eyed and high sat up smoking…” for incantatory effect; in Maya Angelou’s “Still I Rise,” the refrain “I rise” asserts resilience; Shakespeare’s “Macbeth” uses “Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow” to convey existential futility; Gertrude Stein’s “Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose” explores identity through repetition; Lucille Clifton repeats “won’t you celebrate with me” to build communal affirmation.
Additional Notes
Word repetition deliberately repeats specific words for emphasis, rhythm, or incantatory effect. This fundamental technique creates patterns ranging from subtle echoes to powerful anaphora or epistrophe.
Also Known As
Anaphora Word recurrence Repetition of words Anadiplosis Antanaclasis Conduplication Lexical repetition Palilogy verbal echo Lexical recurrence Ploce
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