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Telescoping 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

A rhyme scheme where rhyming pairs contract (e.g., ABAB to AA) or expand (e.g., AA to ABAB) within a stanza’s progression.

Detailed Definition
Telescoping rhyme occurs when a rhyme sound from one line echoes partially or fully in a subsequent non-rhyming line, creating a delayed or nested sonic effect; this technique extends rhyme’s reach beyond adjacent or alternating lines, enriching the poem’s acoustic texture.
Example
Example in poetry:
Telescoping rhyme: In nursery rhymes: "Jack and Jill went up the hill / To fetch a pail of water— / Jack fell down and broke his crown, / And Jill came tumbling after" (hill/Jill, crown/down); Emily Dickinson’s slant rhymes that collapse across stanzas; Contemporary: Terrance Hayes’ "American Sonnets" use internal telescoping rhymes; Rap poetry like Kendrick Lamar’s "DNA." employs cascading end sounds
Additional Notes
Rhyme that extends or contracts syllabically across stanzas. Creates telescoping effect. Experimental technique. Study avant-garde poetry for unusual rhyme structures.
Also Known As
Compressed rhyme Collapsed sound Condensed echo Merged rhyme
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