| Elegy | A text of mourning |
| Lyric | Any verse text as much concerned with the communication a sentiment as with the telling of a story |
| ubi sunt [qui ante fuerunt] | “Where are they [who came before]?”: a transience topos found widely in medieval literature. In Old English, it is found both in elegy and in homilies. |
| Voyage of life | The representation of life through the image of a sea voyage. In a Christian context, this evokes the understanding that life is uncomfortable and dangerous but has a well-defined destination in a safe harbour. |
| Wisdom contest | A convention in Old Norse eddic literature in which two individuals duel each other by means of riddles or questions about the truths of the universe |