The rhyme scheme is the pattern of rhyme that’s used in a poem. It corresponds with the end sounds that feature in lines of verse.
Common rhyme schemes A ballade is a rhyming poem with a defined rhyme scheme of ABABBCBC, seen here in one stanza from Andrew Lang’s “Ballade of the Optimist,” written in 1905: Heed not the folk who sing or say In sonnet sad or sermon chill, "Alas, alack, and well-a-day, This...
Rathburn’s use of this simple rhyme scheme follows the lulling pattern of a lullaby. This also allows the disturbing scene within the poem to take on even more power as the postpartum depression she describes stands in sharp relief to the comforting and predictable sonic pattern of this rhyme...
In poetry, a rhyme scheme determines and explains which lines of the poem rhyme with other lines in the poem. Rhyme schemes are notated in letters like ABAB. These letters represent four lines of the poem; the lines with the same letters rhyme. In this lesson, find a detailed rhyme scheme...
Is a 14-line poem considered a sonnet? Some 14 line poems are sonnets, but not all. To be a sonnet, a poem should be written in iambic pentameter and follow one of several common rhyme schemes. Sonnets are usually but not always about love. What are the main features of Shakespearean ...
Monorhyme refers to the use of the same end-sound within multiple lines of a poem. Usually, the term describes poems that only use one sound.
What is a rhyme scheme? Here’s a quick and simple definition: A rhyme scheme is the pattern according to which end rhymes (rhymes located at the end of lines) are repeated in works poetry. Rhyme schemes are described using letters of the alphabet, such that all the lines in a poem th...
The alternating rhyme is another classic rhyme scheme. Simple, yet precise, the ABAB pattern alternates rhymes every other line. You’ll find plenty of examples throughout history, but we’ll turn to Emily Brontë for this one. Her short poem “I Know Not How It Falls on Me”...
Examples of Rhyme, Half-Rhyme, and Internal Rhyme in Writing Rhyme Example 1. “And now he slowly rises up/over trees and snow./He begins to grow more thin, and then/vanished in air!”— John Logan’s poem, “White Pass Ski Patrol” contains two half-rhymes, “begins” and “thin,...
In other words, the rhyme scheme for a monorhyming poem would just be AAAA, etc Classifying Rhymes by Their Placement Within Lines In addition to the categories above, which describe rhymes based on the types of sounds they have in common, rhymes can also be described by their location ...