Home › Glossary › Letter R

Rubai

Form
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

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 quatrain with an AABA rhyme scheme, often philosophical or lyrical, famously used by Omar Khayyám in meditative verse.

Detailed Definition
A rubai (plural: rubaiyat) is a Persian quatrain with an AABA rhyme scheme, traditionally exploring themes of transience, wine, and existential doubt; popularized in the West by Edward FitzGerald’s translation of Omar Khayyam, it balances epigrammatic wit with philosophical melancholy in a tightly structured lyrical frame.
Example
Example in poetry:
Rubai by Omar Khayyám: “A Book of Verses underneath the Bough”; Edward FitzGerald’s translation popularized rubai in English; Contemporary rubai by Agha Shahid Ali: “Even the greatest grief has its music”; Rubai form: AABA rhyme, quatrain, philosophical tone
Additional Notes
Rubai is Persian four-line stanza form, typically with AABA rhyme scheme. Building block of rubáiyát. Related to quatrain traditions globally. FitzGerald's Omar Khayyám translation popularized form in English.
Also Known As
Persian quatrain Omar Khayyam stanza Four-line Persian
Skip to main content