n. [ L. ad + litera letter. See Letter. ] The repetition of the same letter at the beginning of two or more words immediately succeeding each other, or at short intervals; as in the following lines: - [ 1913 Webster ]
Behemoth, biggest born of earth, upheaved
His vastness. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]
Fly o'er waste fens and windy fields. Tennyson. [ 1913 Webster ]
☞ The recurrence of the same letter in accented parts of words is also called alliteration. Anglo-Saxon poetry is characterized by alliterative meter of this sort. Later poets also employed it. [ 1913 Webster ]
In a somer seson whan soft was the sonne,
I shope me in shroudes as I a shepe were. P. Plowman. [ 1913 Webster ]