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ABBA enclosure

Rhyme
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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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 quatrain rhyme scheme where the first and fourth lines rhyme and the second and third lines rhyme (ABBA)

Detailed Definition
ABBA enclosure, also known as envelope rhyme, is a quatrain structure where the first and fourth lines rhyme (A), and the second and third lines share a different rhyme (B), forming a symmetrical “enclosing” pattern. This form is frequently used in Petrarchan sonnets’ octave and lends a sense of containment and balance, ideal for meditative or introspective poetry that seeks internal resolution within a compact stanza.
Example
Example in poetry:
Alfred Lord Tennyson’s "In Memoriam" uses ABBA enclosure: "Strong Son of God, immortal Love, / Whom we, that have not seen thy face, / By faith, and faith alone, embrace, / Believing where we cannot prove"; Matthew Arnold’s "Dover Beach" opens with ABBA: "The sea is calm tonight. / The tide is full, the moon lies fair / Upon the straits; on the French coast the light / Gleams and is gone"; W.H. Auden’s "In Memory of W.B. Yeats" includes ABBA stanzas: "He disappeared in the dead of winter: / The brooks were frozen, the airports almost deserted, / And snow disfigured the public statues; / The mercury sank in the mouth of the dying day"; Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s sonnets often feature ABBA quatrains: "I thought once how Theocritus had sung / Of the sweet years, the dear and wished-for years, / Who each one in a gracious hand appears / To bear a gift for mortals, old or young"
Additional Notes
ABBA enclosure describes a structural symmetry where outer elements mirror inner ones (e.g., in rhyme or theme), creating a “framed” effect; while often used interchangeably with ABBA rhyme, “enclosure” emphasizes the architectural containment of the form—this pattern appears in Petrarchan sestets and meditative lyrics, fostering introspection by wrapping contrasting ideas within a harmonious sonic boundary.
Also Known As
enclosed quatrain ABBA rhyme embracing quatrain chiasmic enclosure Embracing rhyme structure Inclosed rhyme
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