Alliteration is the use in speech or writing of several words close together which all begin with the same letter or sound.
[technical]
alliteration in British English
(əˌlɪtəˈreɪʃən)
noun
the use of the same consonant (consonantal alliteration) or of a vowel, not necessarily the same vowel (vocalic alliteration), at the beginning of each word or each stressed syllable in a line of verse, as in around the rugged rock the ragged rascal ran
Derived forms
alliterative (alˈliterative)
adjective
Word origin
C17: from Medieval Latin alliterātiō (from Latin al- (see ad-) + litera letter), on the model of obliterātiōobliteration
alliteration in American English
(əˌlɪtərˈeɪʃən)
noun
repetition of an initial sound, usually of a consonant or cluster, in two or more words of a phrase, line of poetry, etc. (Ex.: “What a tale of terror now their turbulency tells!”)
Word origin
ML alliteratio < L ad-, to + littera, letter1
Examples of 'alliteration' in a sentence
alliteration
It was more than that, of course, but she liked the careless sound of the alliteration.