Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Having corresponding sounds, especially terminal sounds: Describes words, lines of poetry, or verses that end with similar or identical sounds. This correspondence typically occurs at the end of lines or words.

Usage

• The adjective "rhyming" is used to describe a pair or group of words, or a piece of text, where the final stressed vowel and all following sounds are identical or very similar.
• It is commonly applied in the context of poetry, lyrics, and language learning to identify phonetic patterns.

Examples

• Adjective:
  • The poet wrote a simple poem with rhyming couplets.
  • "Cat" and "hat" are classic examples of rhyming words.
  • Children's books often use rhyming text to make them more engaging and easier to remember.

Advanced Usage

• "rhyming slang": A form of slang, especially associated with Cockney English, where a word is replaced by a phrase that rhymes with it (e.g., "apples and pears" for "stairs"). The phrase is then often shortened, so the rhyming word is dropped.
  • He used some Cockney rhyming slang that was difficult for outsiders to understand.

Variants and Related Words

• Rhyme (noun/verb): The correspondence of sound itself, or the act of creating such a correspondence.
  • Noun: The rhyme in that song is very clever.
  • Verb: Can you think of a word to rhyme with "orange"?
• Rhymed (adjective): A synonym for "rhyming," often used interchangeably.
  • The translation was in rhymed verse.
• Unrhymed (adjective): The opposite, lacking such sound correspondence.
  • He preferred writing unrhymed, free verse poetry.

Synonyms

• Assonant: Having similarity in sound, especially vowel sounds. (Note: This is a more specific literary term.)
• Alliterative: Having the same consonant sound at the beginning of closely connected words. (Note: This refers to initial sounds, not terminal ones.)

Related Phrases

• Rhyming dictionary: A specialized dictionary that lists words grouped by their ending sounds to aid in writing poetry or lyrics.
  • She consulted a rhyming dictionary to finish the song's chorus.
• Internal rhyme: A rhyme that occurs within a single line of verse, not just at the end.
  • The poet's use of internal rhyme added a musical quality to the line.

Adjective

1. having corresponding sounds especially terminal sounds
   • rhymed verse
   • rhyming words