When Clever Content Kills Clear Communications
Alliteration can sound impressive and add flair to a presentation — but too much of it hides the real point. Worse, chasing matching sounds can lead to awkward wording or the wrong choice of words altogether, weakening the message even further.
In today’s post, we explore when alliteration works, when it falters, and how a broader repertoire of rhetorical techniques can lead to sharper, smarter communication.
When Alliteration Works
Alliteration has its rightful place — and when used well, it’s delightful.
Marketing slogans (“Don’t Dream It, Drive It”), memorable book titles (“Pride and Prejudice”), and speech openings often benefit from a light touch of repeated sounds. When carefully placed, alliteration creates a sense of rhythm, reinforces key points, and sticks in the listener’s mind.
The key is restraint: Alliteration should be a spice, not the main course.
The Pitfalls of Perpetual Alliteration
When overused, alliteration becomes distracting, juvenile, and even irritating. Instead of emphasizing key ideas, it draws attention to itself — often at the expense of the speaker’s real message.
Consider the difference:
- Good: “Building Better Bridges Between Teams”
- Bad: “Pioneering Practical Paradigms for Progressive Productivity”
One sticks. The other spirals into silliness.
Richer Rhetorical Devices to Use Instead
If you want your presentations to persuade rather than merely perform, consider expanding your rhetorical toolkit. Here are a few powerful alternatives:
Anaphora
Start strong — and then start strong again — and again.
Example: “We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields…”
Antithesis
Make your point stand taller by placing it next to its opposite.
Example: “Ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.”
Asyndeton
Cut the “and” — stack ideas for speed and punch.
Example: “I came, I saw, I conquered.”
Metaphor
Say it smartly: show one thing through the image of another.
Example: “Time is a thief.”
Polysyndeton
More and more and more — create a rhythmic, overwhelming effect.
Example: “We have ships and men and money and stores.”
Merism
Mention the parts to master the whole.
Example: “Ladies and gentlemen, young and old, rich and poor…”
Blazon
Shine a spotlight on every detail, creating a vivid catalog.
Example: “Her eyes like sapphires, her lips like rubies, her hair spun gold…”
Hypophora
Ask your reader a question — then swoop in with the answer.
Example: “Why do we persevere? Because the stakes are too high to quit.”
Reimagining the Title Using Different Rhetorical Devices
Here’s how the original title could morph using different techniques:
Original Title:
The Perils of Perpetual Alliteration in Professional Presentations: A PowerPoint Predicament
Using Anaphora:
“When style overtakes substance, when sound outweighs sense, when alliteration overwhelms the argument…”
Using Antithesis:
“Where Sound Shines but Sense Suffers: The Risk of Alliteration in Professional Presentations”
Using Asyndeton:
“Peril, Pretension, Performance: How Alliteration Derails Professional Presentations”
Using Metaphor:
“Drowning the Message in a Sea of Sound: The Hidden Risk of Alliterative Presentations”
Using Polysyndeton:
“The Perils and Pitfalls and Problems of Perpetual Alliteration in Professional Presentations”
Using Hyperbaton:
“Perpetual Alliteration’s Perils in Professional Presentations, They Are”
Using Anadiplosis:
“Alliteration leads to repetition; repetition leads to distraction; distraction leads to disaster in professional presentations.”
Using Diacope:
“The Perils of Alliteration — Perpetual, Professional, Problematic”
Using Erotesis:
“Is Alliteration Enhancing Your Presentation — or Ending It?”
Using Hypophora:
“Can too much alliteration sabotage your presentation? Absolutely.”
Final Thoughts
In the end, the goal of any professional presentation is not merely to sound clever but to be clear, compelling, and credible. Alliteration, while charming, should be just one instrument in a broader rhetorical orchestra. By mastering tools like anaphora, antithesis, metaphor, and more, presenters can move beyond superficial style to deliver messages that resonate, persuade, and endure.
After all, a presentation’s success should be measured not by the number of syllables that match — but by the ideas that stick.
Presentations should elevate ideas, expectations, and eyelids.
📣 Join the Conversation
Have you seen (or given) a presentation where a rhetorical device worked brilliantly — or backfired spectacularly?
Which devices have you found most powerful — or most distracting?
Share your experiences in the comments — I’d love to hear your best (and worst) examples!