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Sound in Poetry: Rhyme, Alliteration, Assonance, and Consonance

Capítulo 5

Estimated reading time: 6 minutes

Why Sound Devices Matter

Poetry is designed to be heard as well as read. Sound devices create emphasis (what your ear notices first), shape mood (tension, calm, playfulness, menace), and increase memorability (patterns that stick). Many sound effects work by repeating something—an ending sound, a vowel, a consonant, or a whole syllable—so the ear begins to anticipate and feel the pattern.

Rhyme: End, Internal, and Slant

End rhyme

End rhyme happens when the final stressed vowel and following sounds match at the ends of lines. It can make a poem feel finished, musical, or tightly controlled.

The night is deep, the street is still,  
I climb the stairs against my will.

Here, still / will rhyme at the line endings.

Internal rhyme

Internal rhyme occurs within a single line or across the middle of lines. It often speeds the line up, adds bounce, or creates a “locked-in” feeling because the rhyme arrives sooner than expected.

I drove through the night, my mind in flight.

night and flight rhyme inside the line.

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Slant rhyme (near rhyme)

Slant rhyme (also called near rhyme) is an imperfect match: the sounds are similar but not identical. Slant rhyme can feel subtle, uneasy, modern, or emotionally complex because it almost resolves but not quite.

Vowel changes, consonants match: shape / ship
Consonants change, vowels match: late / lane
Stress shifts: begin / again

Try saying a slant rhyme aloud: your mouth makes a similar movement, but the ear hears a slight mismatch.

Sound Repetition Inside the Line

Alliteration (repeated beginning consonant sounds)

Alliteration repeats consonant sounds at the beginnings of nearby words (or on stressed syllables). It can create punch, speed, or a sense of insistence.

Wild winds worried the window.

The repeated w sound pushes the line forward and can suggest gusts or agitation.

Assonance (repeated vowel sounds)

Assonance repeats vowel sounds in nearby words. It often creates a smoother, more “echoing” music than alliteration and can suggest mood (bright, dark, tense, calm) through mouth shape.

Low moans rolled over stone.

The long o sound slows the line and can feel heavy or mournful.

Consonance (repeated consonant sounds, often at the ends)

Consonance repeats consonant sounds anywhere in nearby words, frequently at the ends. It can create a subtle chime without full rhyme, adding cohesion and texture.

Blank and think; drift and left.

The repeated nk and ft sounds knit the words together.

Sibilance (a type of consonance with “s/sh/z” sounds)

Sibilance is repetition of hissing consonants like s, sh, and z. It can suggest whispering, secrecy, softness, or menace depending on context and pace.

Softly, she slid the secret note.

The hissy sounds can make the line feel quiet and conspiratorial.

Onomatopoeia (words that imitate sounds)

Onomatopoeia uses words whose sound imitates the thing described. It can make a moment vivid and immediate, especially in action or sensory scenes.

buzz, hiss, clang, thud, whisper

The pan went clang; the lid went clatter.

Even without explanation, the ear “hears” the event.

A Simple Marking System for Hearing Patterns

Use a consistent, quick system to make sound patterns visible. The goal is not to label everything, but to notice what repeats and how it affects the line.

Step-by-step marking

Bracket rhyme at line ends or inside lines: [rhyme]
Circle repeated consonants (especially alliteration/consonance): use ( ) around the letters or the whole word.
Underline repeated vowels (assonance): represent underlining with _vowel_ in plain text.
Star sound-imitating words (onomatopoeia): add * before the word.

When you mark, read aloud again. Your ear should confirm what your eye suspects.

Mini demonstration of the marking system

Cold (c)louds (c)lose in, [slow] and [low].

Brackets show end/internal rhyme (slow/low), and the repeated cl/c consonant cluster is circled to show consonance/alliteration.

Public-Domain Excerpt: Sound Clusters Mimicking Motion

The following excerpt is from Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s The Charge of the Light Brigade (1854), which is in the public domain. Notice how repeated consonants and strong beats can mimic pounding motion.

Half a league, half a league,  
Half a league onward,  
All in the valley of Death  
Rode the six hundred.

Listen for what the sounds do

The repeated phrase Half a league creates a drumlike insistence, like measured strides.
The repeated l sound (liquid consonant) can feel rolling, as if the line keeps moving forward.
The repeated h breath at the start of Half can add urgency when read aloud.

Marking the excerpt (example)

(H)alf a _ea_gue, (h)alf a _ea_gue,  
(H)alf a _ea_gue onward,  
All in the va(l)ley of Dea(th)  
Rode the six hundred.

In this sample markup, repeated beginning consonants are circled (shown with parentheses), and the repeated vowel sound in league is underlined (shown with underscores). Your markings may differ depending on what your ear catches first; that is normal.

Activities

Activity 1: Read aloud to detect patterns

Goal: train your ear to notice emphasis and mood created by sound.

Choose 4–8 lines of any poem you are studying (or use the excerpt above).
Read the lines aloud twice: first at a natural pace, then slower.
On the second reading, mark the text: bracket any rhyme, circle repeated consonants, underline repeated vowels, and star any onomatopoeia.
Answer in 2–3 sentences: Which sound pattern was strongest? What mood or motion did it create (rush, calm, tension, softness, harshness)?

Activity 2: Write two lines using one sound device intentionally

Goal: practice choosing sound for effect, not by accident.

Pick one device: end rhyme, internal rhyme, slant rhyme, alliteration, assonance, consonance, sibilance, or onomatopoeia.
Decide the intended effect: emphasis (make a word stand out), mood (eerie, playful, tender), or memorability (catchy, chant-like).
Write two lines (any topic). Keep them short enough to hear clearly when spoken.
Underline/circle/bracket your own lines using the marking system.
Write 1–2 sentences explaining: What did you repeat? and What effect were you aiming for?

Quick models (for reference)

Device	Two-line model	Intended effect
Alliteration	`(B)itter (b)ranches (b)eat the pane; (b)lack birds (b)olt.`	Sharp, percussive energy; agitation
Assonance	`The _oo_cean m_oo_ans in blue-lit air; it l_oo_ps and l_oo_sens.`	Slow, echoing mood
Slant rhyme	`I held the [map] too long in my hand; it led to a [moth].`	Uneasy near-resolution

Now answer the exercise about the content:

A poet wants a rhyme that almost matches but leaves a slight mismatch to create a subtle, uneasy near-resolution. Which sound device best fits this goal?

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Slant rhyme uses similar but not identical sounds, so it almost resolves without fully matching. This can feel subtle or uneasy compared with the stronger closure of end rhyme.