How to Write a Diamante Poem | Full Guide with Templates

Poems are pieces of writing in which particular attention expresses feelings (love, anxiety, hate, bitterness, joy) and intensity to diction. Different poems are differentiated by styles, patterns, lines, and forms for instance, sonnets, couplets, Villanelle, Diamante, Limerick, Ode, and so on. Each of them has its own unique. 

Now, lets single our one- Diamante Poems.

Diamante Poems are poems with unrhymed seven lines, in which the beginning and ending lines are the shortest, while the lines in the middle are longer. 

History has it that Diamante poem also known as Diamond poem has existed the last 40 years. And it has gained more popularity than some poems. 

Read on to learn about a Diamante Poem’s unique features that distinguish it from other types of poem. Also, you will get a detailed understanding of Diamante Poem formats and the best way to organize one. 

Table of contents

What is a Diamante Poem?

Diamante is an unrhymed seven-line poem (pronounced dee-uh-MAHN-tay).

The smallest lines are at the beginning and end of the poem, while the longest lines are in the middle, giving the poem a diamond form.

The Italian word “diamante” means “diamond,” hence this poetry style is named after the diamond shape.

According to history, Diamante’s poem was established in 1969 by an American poet, Iris McClellan Tiedt, and has since become widely popular in schools.

Due to the format of this poem, it is sometimes known as a “diamond poems.”

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Rules to Write a Diamante Poem

Some of the rules to writing a diamante:

  1. It must be seven lines long
  2. The first and last lines must have only one word.
  3. The second and sixth lines have two words.
  4. The third and fifth lines have three words.
  5. And the fourth line has four words.
  6. Lines 1, 4, and 7 have nouns.
  7. Lines 2 and 6 have adjectives.
  8. Lines 3 and 5 have verbs.

Here’s an easy way to visualize all three rules:

Noun

Adjective, Adjective

Verb, Verb, Verb

Noun, Noun, Noun, Noun

Verb, Verb, Verb

Adjective, Adjective

Noun

Other tips that can help you:

  • Choose the most descriptive words from your brainstorming and put your diamante together. You don’t need a title because diamantes don’t need one.
  • Rewrite the poem on a new notebook when you are done writing.
  • Center your diamante on the paper.
  • Start each line with a capital letter and remember your commas. Do not use ending punctuation.
  • Include three spaced periods in the middle of Line D.
  • Read your poem out loud.
  • Take a break to refresh your mind.
  • When finished, double-check for concreteness!

 What is an example of a diamante poem?

Majorly, diamante poem is of two types; Synonym Diamante poem and Antonym diamante poem.

In a synonym diamante poem, the first and last words have the same meaning. They are nearest in meaning.

For instance:

  • Heat and warmth
  • Noise and sound
  • Snake and serpent
  • Fear and fright
  • Employer and boss
  • Happiness and joy

In contrast, an Antonym diamante poem is a seven lines poem that first and last words have opposite meanings.

And because it has a diamond-like shape, it begins and ends with single words which must be opposite in meaning.

For instance:

  • Mountain and valley
  • Question and answer
  • Curve and line
  • Hero and coward
  • Hunger and thirst
  • King and queen
  • Peace and war

More Examples of Diamante Poem

Have a clear view of the diamante poem so your mind isn’t left clouded with ambiguity.

Rain

Beautiful, wet

Cooling, falling, showering

Water, ray, drops, sun

Soothing, tanning, warming

Hot, bright

Sunshine

dead

Still, old

Unmoving, lying, shrinking

Gravestone, home, coffin, food

Standing, dancing, growing

Fresh, new

Alive

How do you write a diamante poem?

Writing a diamante poem requires a pattern or procedures just like other poems.

Basically, there are two methods you can take to write an exclusive and interesting diamante poem. They include:

Brainstorming a Diamante

Drafting a Diamante

Method 1: Brainstorming a Diamante

1. In using the brainstorming method, first, choose 2 nouns with opposite meanings. Call the first noun (topic A) and the second noun (B)

For instance, you can use;

  • Man and Woman
  • Cats and dogs
  • Book and Pen

2. Get 5 to 6 adjectives that describe topic A

A descriptive word is an adjective. Although your poetry will only require two adjectives, providing more than you will require will provide you with more possibilities to pick from.

For example, if topic A is man, you might include terms like tall, friendly, short, fair, aggressive, Funny, and cocky.

If cats are your topic A, you might include words like neat, enjoyable, astounding, and adventurous.

  1. Get 5 to 6 gerunds that explain topic A. A gerund is a verb that ends in –ing and describes an action. Make a list of 5 or 6 of these words to give yourself a variety of choices.
  2. Get 5 to 6 adjectives that describe topic B. Topic B will only require two descriptors, but you should come up with five to six terms to give yourself plenty of possibilities.
  3. Pick 5–6 gerunds that best describe topic B. Make a list of 5 or 6 gerunds for your second theme so that you have a variety of possibilities while writing the poem. If your second theme is woman, you may include loving, dancing, eating, walking, and sleeping on your list. If your second topic is a pen, you may include writing, inking, in your list.
  4. Make a list of seven or eight nouns that best describe topics A and B. For your fourth line, you’ll need four nouns, but try to come up with as many as you can that characterize both topics A and topic B. Try to think of at least a few nouns that could describe both themes. If your diamante is about man and woman, the nouns might contain gender, female, male, adult, wife, or husband.

Method 2: Drafting a Diamante

  1. To begin the poetry, pick a single noun. Select the pair you want to use for your poetry from your list of opposite nouns. Choose which word goes in the first line and which goes in the last. Your first topic, or topic A, will be the first word in the first line. If you chose man and woman, for example, put a man on the first line. Alternatively, if you want cats and dogs, you might begin with cats and end with dogs.
  2. In the second line, follow the noun with two related adjectives. Choose two adjectives from your choice to use in the poem’s second line. Choose the two adjectives that most accurately describe the topic. If your poetry begins with the word “man,” your adjectives can be “aggressive” and “humble.” Your adjectives might be stealthy and autonomous if you started the poem with cat.
  3. In the third line of the poem, use three –ing verbs. Three verbs that explain topic A and finish in –ing should be included in the third line. In the third line of your poetry, write these. For example, if your noun is man, you may use the verbs laughing, running, and playing. If your noun is cats, you may add the terms hunting, napping, and purring to your list.
  4. Fill in the fourth line with four words describing topics A and B. A diamante’s fourth line is the longest in the poem, although it still only comprises four words. You can either choose four nouns to describe both topics and list two words to describe topic A first and then two words to describe topic B. For example, if you’re using summer and winter, your fourth line could include sun, clouds, holidays, and trees. man is represented by the first two nouns, whereas the second two words represent a woman. If your diamante theme is cats and dogs, you may include whiskers, paws, ears, and toys on your list.
  5. Select two additional adjectives to describe topic B. The sixth line contains only two adjectives, both of which should be used to define topic B. Choose these adjectives from the list you generated for topic B. If topic B is woman, for example, you might use the words lovely and pretty.

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What are the practical steps in writing a diamante poem?

Here are Practical Steps in writing Diamante poem:

Step 1: It is necessary to start with either a pronoun or noun, like pizza. Then think of words to describe in the next two lines regarding the first word you have chosen.

Step 2: Select two appropriate adjectives that fit the explanation of the first word which is your main subject. If you have begun your diamante with pizza, then the two adjectives will be hot and cheesy. Feelings attached to the pizza are depicted through the use of these two adjectives.

Step 3: Write three happening verbs in your third line of the diamante poem. The verbs explaining pizza can be chewing, munching, eating.

Step 4: In this stage, you are given two options. Either choose four words or a large phrase. That’s how you can create the fourth line of a diamante poem.

Only four nouns: salt, snack, delicious, finger-licking

A long-phrase: food worth dying for

Step 5: Now here is the most important step. Here you have to be smart enough in picking your poem being a synonym diamante or antonym diamante. According to your decision, three participles will be added. Let’s take a brief look at it;

Antonym participles: hard, dry, unexciting

Synonym participles: juicy, soft, mouthwatering

Step 6: Now, choose two adjectives again. With an antonym diamante, be careful while choosing your adjectives, as they should b opposite to the first word. Adjectives like icing and dessert might look appropriate.

Step 7: End your diamante with a noun. If you are writing on antonym diamante, the last word can be “cake” as your first word was “pizza”.

What should be written on the 4th line of a diamond poem?

On the 4th line of a diamante or diamond poem, it should be filled with at most 4 nouns that describe the first line.

Normally, it should be the longest in the poem. You can decide to choose 4 nouns that describe both topics and you can list 2 words that describe the first line, then list 2 words that describe line 2.

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What is the format for writing a Diamante Poem?

A diamante poem just like every other poem has a particular format that must be followed were writing it.

To start with, the poem’s first line will feature a noun (person, place, or object) that represents the poem’s major theme. We’ll use the noun “smile” as an example.

A smile can be described in two words: cheerful and warm. In this example, those words will make up the second line.

Welcome, motivating, and soothing are three verbs that finish in “-ing” and describe a grin.

The “transition” phrase lies at the heart of the diamante poetry. It will have two words (the first two) that are related to the noun in line one, and two words (the second two) that are related to the noun in line seven. The noun in line seven will be the antonym of the noun in line one once more.

Line five will be similar to line three, with three verbs ending in “ing” that describe the word you’ll use at the end of the poem. The last noun in this example is “frown,” which is the polar opposite of “smiling.” Our example poem’s words are upsetting, discouraging, and gloomy.

Line six is similar to line two in that it has two adjectives that describe the word “frown.” Our remarks are sad and unwelcome in this case.

The word that reflects the polar opposite of our subject appears online seven. The opposite word, in this case, is “frown.”

References

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