Dramatic Terms and
Vocabulary Lists for Romeo and Juliet
Dramatic Terms
tragedy -- a play in which a main character, called the tragic hero, suffers a downfall
tragic flaw -- weakness that causes the downfall of the tragic hero
iambic pentameter (blank verse) -- rhythm scheme with five units, or feet, each of which has an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable; unrhymed
soliloquy -- long speech in which a character, alone on stage, expresses his/her thoughts aloud (heard only by audience)
monologue -- long speech spoken in the presence of other characters on stage
dialogue – conversation between two or more characters
aside -- comment made by a character that is heard by the audience, but not by (most of?) the other characters on stage
foreshadowing -- use of hints or clues to suggest future events
pun -- humorous play on different meanings of a word, or on words that sound alike but have different meanings
dramatic irony -- when the audience (or reader) understands more of a situation than the characters understand
oxymoron -- a figure of speech that is a combination of seemingly contradictory words
juxtaposition for contrast -- placing two people, words, or actions side-by-side in order to heighten the differences between them
foil -- character who provides a strong contrast to another character, with whom several characteristics are shared
comic relief -- a short, funny episode that interrupts an otherwise serious or tragic work of drama
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