alliterative

IPA/əˈlɪtrətɪv/
KK[əlˈɪtɚətɪv]IPA/əˈlɪtəreɪtɪv/

alliterative — adjective

  • alliterativepositive
  • more alliterativecomparative
  • most alliterativesuperlative

1. describing a way of writing or speaking in which several nearby words begin with

1.adjectiveC1
Definition

describing a way of writing or speaking in which several nearby words begin with the same letter or sound, especially a consonant, to create rhythm or make the language more memorable

Example

Amelia's poem was full of alliterative phrases like 'silver sun' and 'wild wind'.

alliterative phrases like

The newspaper headline used alliterative words such as 'massive meltdown' to grab readers' attention.

alliterative words such as

Common collocations
  • alliterative phrase
  • alliterative verse
  • alliterative style
  • alliterative pattern
  • alliterative effect
  • alliterative slogan
Synonyms
  • consonantal

    Broader — relates to any consonant repetition, not specifically at the start of nearby words

  • initial-rhyming

    An informal descriptive phrase rather than a standard synonym; useful for explaining the concept to beginners

Grammar Patterns

alliterative + noun

be + alliterative

Usage Note

Alliterative is most often encountered when discussing poetry, advertising slogans, and speechwriting. In literary studies it is a technical term, but it is also used in everyday contexts to comment on catchy or memorable word choices. Do not confuse alliteration (same beginning sound) with rhyme (same ending sound).

Common Mistakes

The phrase "silver sun" rhymes.
The phrase "silver sun" uses alliteration.
Rhyming repeats the ending sound (e.g., sun/fun), while alliteration repeats the beginning sound (e.g., silver/sun).
Alliteration only works with consonants.
Alliteration most commonly uses consonants, but vowel sounds can also create an alliterative effect (sometimes called assonance when only vowels repeat).
The definition includes all initial sounds, not just consonants.

Word family

  • alliteration
    nounC1
  • alliterate
    verbC2
  • alliteratively
    adverbC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

Alliterative specifically describes words that share the same initial sound, especially a consonant, placed close together — for example, 'Peter Piper picked.' Repetitive is far broader: it refers to anything that occurs again and again, not only sound patterns. Poetic covers a wide range of stylistic features found in verse, of which alliteration is just one. Rhyming is the word most often confused with alliterative: rhyming involves matching ending sounds (e.g., 'cat' and 'hat'), whereas alliterative involves matching beginning sounds. Consonantal relates to consonants in general, without the requirement that the repetition happen at the start of nearby words. In a practical sense: an alliterative headline like 'Big Bang' catches attention through repeated beginning sounds; a rhyming headline like 'Shop and Drop' works through matching end sounds. These two devices serve different purposes and are not interchangeable.

alliterative ↗repetitive ↗poetic ↗rhyming ↗consonantal

Common collocations

Nouns

  • alliterative verse
  • alliterative poetry
  • alliterative style
  • alliterative headline
  • alliterative slogan

Adverbs

  • strongly alliterative
  • highly alliterative
  • purely alliterative

Phrases

  • alliterative in effect
  • alliterative in character

Etymology

LatinEnglish

Alliterative traces back to the Latin noun alliteratio, a combination of ad- (meaning 'to' or 'toward') and littera (meaning 'letter'). The term was coined in English during the early 1600s to name the poetic device of repeating the same initial letter or sound in words that appear close together. The adjective form alliterative followed soon after, and it has remained in use ever since, mostly in discussions of poetry, rhetoric, and memorable language.