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refrain couplet

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 two-line refrain that recurs at intervals in a poem, functioning as a structural anchor or thematic echo.

Detailed Definition
Refrain couplet is a two-line stanza in which the second line (or both) repeats at intervals throughout the poem, creating a musical and thematic anchor; common in ballads and folk verse, the refrain reinforces key emotions or ideas while providing structural cohesion amid narrative or lyrical variation.
Example
Example in poetry:
“The water flows, the water flows— / to where the sea forever goes”; “Oh, my love is like a red, red rose— / that’s newly sprung in June” (Burns refrain); “Row, row, row your boat— / gently down the stream”; “Home, home, the word is sweet— / where weary travelers meet”
Additional Notes
A refrain couplet repeats a pair of lines at intervals to emphasize theme or emotion; common in ballads and folk poetry, it creates musicality and mnemonic structure.
Also Known As
Repeating couplet echoing distich refrain pair choric two-liner echo couplet Kyrielle
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