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Literature Glossary

Don’t be an oxymoron. Know your literary terms.

Over 200 literary terms, Shmooped to perfection.

Kenning

Definition:

A kenning is a figurative compound word used to stand in for a noun. Uh… come again?

Basically, it's when two nouns combine to create another noun. It comes from Old Norse, a.k.a. the language of the Vikings.

Beowulf is a veritable kenning buffet. Instead of blood, we get battle-sweat. And the sea is referred to as the sail-road, swan road, whale's way, and whale-road. Apparently one kenning per symbolic item wasn't enough.

Want a more modern example? How about this: If you referred to Garfield's mouth not as his mouth, but as his lasagna-hole, that would be a kenning. Ever been in a fender-bender? That's a kenning, too. Just don't bring that up when you're exchanging insurance information after one.