| Streu mir Sand in meine Augen... |

~*~

An Introduction to Rhyme Schemes
A guide by The Wayward Star

Rhyming is a very common occurrence in many poems, and there is
literally an unlimited amount of ways that you can format your poem
so that it "rhymes". I assume that everyone knows what a rhyme is,
and what a poem is, so we can skip right along! :3

In this short guide, we'll take a look at some of the more common,
or widely known [and used] rhyme schemes in both modern and
classic poetry. Hopefully you'll find one that works for you!


Format:

This is how I'll format the small rhyme scheme archive:

Rhyme Scheme's Name: The Rhyme Scheme*
A short description of the rhyme scheme.

* - uses letters of the alphabet to show words that rhyme, NOT a
repeated word. Using some basic examples: AA could be: "cat, mat"
AA BB could be: "cat, mat, door, poor"; and ABAB could be: "cat,
door, mat, poor".


Common Rhyme Schemes:


  • No Rhyme: n/a
    What? A poem with no rhymes is still considered to have a rhyming
    scheme? Yes! The word that falls at the end of a line is not allowed
    to rhyme with ANY other line in the entire poem.

  • Monorhyme: AAAAAA...[etc]
    The end of every line rhymes with all other lines. In English, this is
    not often given much academic merit, because the monorhyme is often
    used in children's books.

  • Couplet: AA BB CC
    A very common rhyme scheme in which the rhymes are done in groups
    of two. Usually a rhyme that has already been used will NOT appear in
    the rest of the poem. For example, you would not find: AA BB CC DD EE
    and then two different BB rhymes.

  • Triplet: AAA BBB CCC
    Like the couplet, but the rhymes are done in groups of three.

  • Enclosed Rhyme: ABBA
    Like the name suggests, this is when a rhyme is enclosed between two
    other rhymes.

  • Limerick: AABBA
    A limerick includes two rhyming couplets, and then the first rhyme is
    repeated.

  • Terza Rima: ABA BCB CDC
    A favourite of mine. :3 This type of rhyme scheme seems to have died
    out over the ages, as it is very difficult to do properly in English. Each
    stanza consists of only two lines in which the first and third lines in each
    stanza rhyme, and the line in the middle determines the first and third
    rhyme in the next stanza. Generally the last stanza only contains only a
    rhyming couplet determined by the middle line in the second last stanza.

  • Shakespearean Sonnet: ABAB CDCD EFEF GG
    Most everyone does Shakespeare in school. His sonnets are set to this
    scheme, hence the name. There are three 4-line stanzas that have 2
    rhymes that are not back-to-back, and ends with a rhyming couplet.

In Closing:

Rhyming really helps your poem flow nicely, and gives it a nice, sold
structure [when done properly]. Even if none of the schemes listed
above seem to work for you: that's okay! Like I already said, there is
an unlimited number of rhyming schemes, and I couldn't possibly list
them all! Just keep experimenting, and you'll eventually find one that
works out. :3

~*~

| ...und weck mich nie wieder auf! |