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Radif poem

Form
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 Persian or Urdu poem where each line ends with a repeated word or phrase (the radif).

Detailed Definition
A Radif poem is a composition, especially in Persian or Urdu ghazals, that employs a radif—a repeated word or phrase at the end of each line following the rhyme; this refrain creates sonic cohesion and thematic emphasis, allowing subtle variations in meaning to accrue around a fixed verbal anchor throughout the poem.
Example
Example in poetry:
Ghazals of Ghalib — each couplet ends with same radif (e.g., “–e junūn”); Rumi’s radif poems using “ast” (is) as refrain; Faiz Ahmed Faiz’s “Mujh se pahlī sī muḥabbat” — radif “merī” throughout; classical Urdu radif poems with repeated phrase like “hotā hai”.
Additional Notes
Radif poem repeats a word/phrase at line-end (radif) with preceding rhyme (qafiya); core of ghazal. Practice scansion—Persian/Arabic models essential.
Also Known As
Radif ghazal refrain poem Persian radif lyric rhymed-refrain verse Ghazal
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