Rhyming: Part 2; Types of Rhymes

      Rhyming doesn't have to be exact, like "cat and bat." Rhyming like that is a classic way to rhyme, but there are other ways to rhyme also.


Perfect rhymes: Like my example above, end rhyming is when the last word of a line rhymes with the last word of another line, like in "The Night Before Christmas."

Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St Nicholas soon would be there.

Obviously this example is a poem, which is different from lyrics, but I'll explain the differences and similarities of poems and lyrics in another post.


Internal rhymes: This is when you rhyme two words within the same line. In Eminem's "Ricky Ticky Tock" he uses internal rhymes as well as end rhymes.
Anybody I throw flames at gets a name it's a game
Cause they know that they don't spit the same
It's a shame, what people do for 10 minutes of fame

This is a good example of combining two styles of rhyming.


Imperfect rhymes:  Don't be a purist and think rhymes have to sound exactly the same! An imperfect rhyme is when two words share the same vowel sound, like "heart" and "star", or when they share the same consonant sound, like "walk" and "milk." A good example of an imperfect rhyme is Mumford and Sons "Blank White Page."

 But tell me now, where was my fault?
In loving you with my whole heart
Oh, tell me now, where was my fault?
In loving you with my whole heart


Rich rhymes:  These rhymes are awesome, I love them the most, at least for now. It doesn't have to be spelled the same, it just has to sound similar, like "dreamer" and "schemer", or "raise" and "raze."  Unfortunately I can't think of a song or poem off the top of my head that uses this form. I tried a Google search and came up with nothing. Leave me a comment of a rich rhyme if you find one.


Eye rhymes:

These are rhymes that look like they rhyme but when pronounced they sound nothing alike. Like "bough" and "rough." Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18 is a great example:

Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer’s lease hath all too short a date: 

In this sonnet "temperate" and "date" may look like they are pronounced similarly but unless you pronounce "temperate" as temp-er-ate they only rhyme in appearance.


Identical rhymes: Basically it's using the same word twice. A good example is Emily Dickinson's "Because I Could not Stop for Death."


We paused before a House that seemed
      A Swelling of the Ground—
      The Roof was scarcely visible—
     The Cornice—in the Ground— 
 

I hope this helps anyone having difficulties with rhymes. It definitely opened my eyes to rhyming. Too many times people think rhyming only works one way. More rhyming tips and information to come!