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Tempered rhyme

Sound
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

An imperfect or slant rhyme softened by near-matching sounds, allowing subtle dissonance while retaining sonic linkage.

Detailed Definition
Tempered rhyme refers to near or slant rhymes that are softened or subtly varied rather than exact, allowing for greater flexibility in diction while maintaining sonic cohesion; it often creates a more natural, conversational tone while preserving musicality in modern and contemporary verse.
Example
Example in poetry:
Tempered rhyme: Yeats’ "Sailing to Byzantium": "That is no country for old men. / The young / In one another’s arms" (men/arms = slant); Emily Dickinson’s "hope is the thing with feathers" (soul/all); Modern: Seamus Heaney’s "Digging" uses soul/cool as tempered rhyme; Avoids perfect rhyme for subtlety and tension
Additional Notes
Tempered rhyme: A softened or partial rhyme used to avoid sing-song effect; may blend slant rhyme with assonance or consonance for subtle musicality.
Also Known As
Modified rhyme Qualified consonance Adjusted sound Softened rhyme
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