/euh lit'euh ray"sheuhn/ , n.
1. the commencement of two or more stressed syllables of a word group either with the same consonant sound or sound group (consonantal alliteration) , as in from stem to stern, or with a vowel sound that may differ from syllable to syllable (vocalic alliteration) , as in each to all. Cf. consonance (def. 4a).
2. the commencement of two or more words of a word group with the same letter, as in apt alliteration's artful aid.
[ 1650-60; alliteration-, s. of alliteratio, equiv. to al- AL- + literatio, modeled after obliteratio OBLITERATION but intended to convey a deriv. of littera letter ]