A proverb, which comes from the Latin word proverbium, or an adage is a short, traditional saying that shares a belief based on common sense or life experiences. Proverbs are often metaphorical and use set phrases. A proverbial phrase or expression is a type of saying similar to proverbs, passed down through spoken traditions.
The ACT (pronounced AY-see-tee; originally an abbreviation of American College Testing) is a standardized test used for college admissions in the United States. It is administered by ACT, Inc., a for-profit organization with the same name. The ACT test covers three academic skill areas: English, mathematics, and reading.
An acrostic is a type of poem or writing where the first letter of each line (or paragraph) spells out a word, message, or the alphabet. The word “acrostic” comes from French and Latin, which trace back to Greek words meaning “topmost” and “verse.” As a form of writing with rules, an acrostic can help people remember information. When the last letter of each line forms a word, it is called a telestich.
In poetry, accentual verse uses a set number of stresses in each line. This happens even if the number of syllables changes. It is often found in stress-timed languages, like English.
An acatalectic line of verse is a line that has the correct number of syllables in its final foot. In English poetry, this term may not be as important as its opposite, catalectic, because acatalectic lines are the usual case in most types of poetry. Therefore, it is rarely necessary to mention acatalectic lines directly.
An abecedarius (also called abecedary or abecedarian) is a special kind of acrostic poem. In this type of poem, the first letter of each word, line, or section follows the order of the alphabet, starting with A and ending with Z.
The Herman Voaden Playwriting Competition is a literary award given every two years by Queen’s University to plays written by Canadian playwrights. The award was started in 1997 and is funded by a gift from the late playwright Herman Voaden to the university. The competition gives a first prize of $3,000 and a second prize of $2,000.
The Governor General’s Awards are a group of yearly honors given by Canada’s Governor General to celebrate achievements in many areas, such as education, art, and community work. The first award was started and began in 1937 by Lord Tweedsmuir, a person who wrote many books about real and imaginary events; he created the Governor General’s Literary Award with two categories. Later governors general also created awards for areas they personally valued.
The Griffin Poetry Prize is a Canadian award for poetry. It was created in 2000 by businessman and philanthropist Scott Griffin. Before 2022, two separate awards were given to one Canadian poet and one international poet who writes in English.
The Gerald Lampert Memorial Award is an annual award for literature given by the League of Canadian Poets to the best poetry book published by a writer who has never written a book before. The award is given in honor of Gerald Lampert, a person who supported poetry. Each winner receives a cash prize of $1000.