P O E T R Y B O N E S
  • Writing Practice Blog
  • About
  • ART-chives
  • Contact

...the boost your writing practice needs

PoetryBones blog offers generative writing sessions to boost your writing practice in poetry, creative nonfiction, memoir, even personal development. See  ABOUT for more information on this writing practice.  CONTACT PoetryBones to inquire about joining a live writing session via Zoom; new cohort groups are forming.  ​ 

Poetry Experiments: Words I Confuse

2/20/2020

0 Comments

 
Picture
Confusing words or simply wondering about the similarity in sound but the polar differences in meaning is where the tension for your poem might be found.  The confusion around pairs of words might be attributed to their being homonyms or homophones, because there are multiple meanings to the word or even additional connotations. Sometimes the confusion can occur in the speaking of the word, depending on which syllable is stressed, the meter of a sentence, learning words in another language, and even the tone when the word is spoken.   This confusion is the impetus for today's poetry writing challenge.

 "Oblation" by Tanya Grae introduces the free write prompt, and "Persimmons" by Li-Young Lee precedes the poem prompt.  
Picture

Free Write Prompt

​Write about words you confuse or have confused in the past.  Write about the juxtaposition of these "sound alike" words.   Include their meanings, or use one of the words in the poem and imply the other, as Grae does in the poem "Oblation" wherein an "ablation" process is being described.  Write about the situations where the words come up; describe parallel things that are happening in relation to these situations.  If you need commonly "confused" words, here are some suggestions.  (Write for 10 minutes.)
Picture

Picture
Picture

Poem Prompt

 Write your “confused words” poem.  What do these confusions mean? Feel free to explore the parallel stories, the tangents that go with the words, as Lee does in "Persimmons."

Something Extra

 This last poem plays on the various meanings of the word "lie." 
Picture
Comedians and "confused words"  Norm Crosby's classic act includes malapropisms and Ismo, Finnish comedian, capitalizes on language differences.


Share your "confusing word" anecdotes or poem excerpts below.

​

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Author

    Picture
    Christine curates the POETRY BONES blog and hosts the weekly live writing practice. Contact her with inquiries.

    Archives

    March 2022
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019

    RSS Feed

    #whyiwrite

    National Day of Writing is October 20, 2021. PoetryBones members post their reasons for writing.
    Why do you write?
    Make your own social media badge here.
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
copyright 2019 c.stiel all rights reserved. i earnestly try to attribute images, poems, and video to their creators.
​to correct an attribution or to have a work removed, please CONTACT .
  • Writing Practice Blog
  • About
  • ART-chives
  • Contact