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Interrupted 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

A rhyme disrupted or broken by interruption in syntax or thought

Detailed Definition
Interrupted rhyme is a rhyming pattern where expected sonic closure is delayed, altered, or disrupted—through slant rhyme, missing lines, or phonetic substitution—creating suspense, irony, or unresolved tension; it subverts traditional expectations to reflect thematic fragmentation or modern doubt.
Example
Example in poetry:
Interrupted rhyme breaks expected patterns: Emily Dickinson’s slant rhymes (“room/tomb”); Gerard Manley Hopkins’ sprung rhythm disrupts rhyme; modern examples include Paul Muldoon’s deceptive rhymes; Sylvia Plath’s “Ariel” uses fractured sound patterns; Terrance Hayes’ “American Sonnets” interrupt rhyme with enjambment.
Additional Notes
Interrupted rhyme: A rhyme scheme where rhyming lines are separated by one or more unrhymed lines (e.g., a-b-c-b or a-b-a-b where only the B's rhyme); creates a less insistent or more subtle musicality than continuous rhyme.
Also Known As
broken rhyme disrupted rhyme interrupted rhyming pair fractured rhyme Aposiopetic rhyme Halted rhyme
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