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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
Similarity of sounds in stressed syllables, typically at line ends.
Explore this topic in depth (3)
How to Read a Poem
— Poetry is not a puzzle with one hidden answer that only experts can decode. Begin by noticing what a poem actually does: read it, hear it, question it, and return to it.
Metaphysical Poetry
— Metaphysical poetry brings love, faith, science, death and the body into unusually close contact. Its poets—especially John Donne, George Herbert and Andrew Marvell—make poems that think aloud, argue fiercely and discover emotional force in surprising comparisons.
How to Read Poetry Aloud
— Reading poetry aloud is not about sounding theatrical. It is a way of listening more closely to how sentences, lines, rhythms, sounds and silences work together.
Detailed Definition
Rhyme is the repetition of similar or identical sounds, usually at the ends of lines (end rhyme) but also internally, creating musicality, structural cohesion, and mnemonic aid; perfect rhyme (cat/hat), slant rhyme (worm/swarm), and eye rhyme (love/move) offer varied sonic effects.
Example
Example in poetry:
Perfect rhyme: “light” / “night” in Shakespeare’s sonnets; Slant rhyme: “prove” / “love” in Emily Dickinson; Eye rhyme: “cough” / “bough” in older English verse; Internal rhyme: “Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary” (Poe); Feminine rhyme: “turtle” / “fertile” in Alexander Pope; Masculine rhyme: “cat” / “hat” in nursery rhymes.
Additional Notes
Rhyme: The repetition of similar sounds, usually at line endings; enhances musicality, structure, and memorability; includes perfect, slant, eye, and internal rhyme.