Home › Glossary › Letter A

ABBA arrangement

Structure
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A chiastic or inverted structure expressed as ABBA patterning of words or sounds.

Detailed Definition
A rhyme scheme pattern where the first and fourth lines rhyme with each other, and the second and third lines rhyme with each other, creating an envelope or enclosed rhyme structure. This arrangement is also known as enclosed rhyme or envelope stanza. The ABBA pattern creates a sense of symmetry and containment, as the outer rhymes enclose the inner rhymes. This structure is commonly found in the octave of the Petrarchan sonnet and in various quatrain forms.
Example
Example in poetry:
ABBA arrangement example: Four lines where the first and fourth rhyme, and the second and third rhyme, e.g., "I walk beside the silent lake (A), The trees reflect in mirrored light (B), Their whispers echo through the night (B), As stars above begin to wake." (A)
Additional Notes
ABBA arrangement describes a rhyme scheme where the first and fourth lines rhyme, and the second and third lines rhyme; often used in quatrains and Petrarchan sonnet sestets to create interlocking or enclosed harmony.
Also Known As
ABBA rhyme scheme Envelope rhyme Embracing rhyme structure Antimetabolic structure Chiasmic
Skip to main content