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Exact rhyme

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

Rhyme with complete phonetic correspondence from the stressed vowel onward

Detailed Definition
Exact rhyme, also called perfect rhyme, occurs when the final stressed vowel and all subsequent sounds of two or more words are identical (e.g., “light” and “bright”), creating sonic harmony that reinforces structure, emphasizes key ideas, or enhances musicality in lyrical and formal verse.
Example
Example in poetry:
“Cat” and “hat” in nursery rhymes demonstrate exact rhyme; Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18 rhymes “day” and “May” as exact rhyme; Emily Dickinson frequently uses exact rhyme like “see” and “me”; Robert Frost’s “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” uses exact rhyme: “know” and “though.”
Additional Notes
Exact rhyme (or perfect rhyme) matches final stressed vowel and all following sounds (e.g., “light/bright”); foundational in traditional forms like sonnets and ballads; differs from slant rhyme, which only partially matches sound; enhances musicality and memorability.
Also Known As
Perfect rhyme Full rhyme Identical rhyme True rhyme equal rhyme technical rhyme
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