Why It Matters
Alliteration creates rhythm and makes phrases memorable. It's especially effective for emphasis and for creating specific sounds (soft "s" sounds for calm, hard "c/k" sounds for harshness).
Examples
“The slippery, slimy snake slithered silently through the grass.”
-- Classic example“Peter's pale face peered through the window.”
-- Model answer“The bitter breeze bit at our bare hands.”
-- Model answerA little alliteration goes a long way. Two or three words with the same starting sound is effective; a whole sentence of alliteration sounds like a tongue twister. Use it once or twice per piece.
Practice Exercises
Try these exercises to practise using alliteration in your own writing. Click "Show Suggestions" to see example answers.
1
Write a sentence about a forest using alliteration with "s" sounds.
Sunlight streamed through the silent, still canopy.
The soft, shadowy silence of the forest surrounded me.
2
Write a sentence about a storm using alliteration with "cr" or "th" sounds.
Thunder cracked and crashed across the churning clouds.
The thick, threatening sky throbbed with electricity.