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Retroflex 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 based on words ending in retroflex consonants (e.g., /ʈ/, /ɖ/), common in South Asian poetic traditions and phonetic systems.

Detailed Definition
Retroflex rhyme involves the repetition of consonant sounds produced with the tongue curled back (retroflex articulation), common in South Asian languages but rare in English; in multilingual or phonetically experimental poetry, it may be used to evoke specific cultural soundscapes or challenge Anglophone phonological norms.
Example
Example in poetry:
Retroflex rhyme uses tongue-curled consonants (e.g., Hindi/Urdu “ṭ” sounds); Rare in English, but approximated in experimental phonetic poetry; Retroflex rhyme in Agha Shahid Ali’s bilingual ghazals; Contemporary sound poets like Christian Bök mimic retroflex articulation for sonic texture
Additional Notes
Retroflex rhyme occurs when consonant sounds curl or bend phonetically at line endings. Subtle variant of assonance. Related to consonance and slant rhyme. Requires careful listening to detect acoustic similarities.
Also Known As
Curved-back rhyme Retroflex echo Turned-tongue sound Backward-curled correspondence
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