A Rhyme Primer

With Examples From Hamilton

5 min readAug 12, 2022

Steve Jurvetson, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Some people think that analyzing something too much takes the fun out of it. I am not one of those people. What follows is a primer on some terminology used in rhyme, along with examples found in the hit musical, Hamilton. Please note that many of these elements overlap and are also used in combination. The next time you hear a song or poem, see how many of these elements you can identify.

Perfect (True) Rhyme is an identical rhyming sound, or in more detail, it’s the identity in sound of an accented vowel in a word, (usually the last one accented), and of all sounds following it, with a difference in the sound of the consonant immediately preceding it.
Example from Hamilton: “Eliza, I don’t have a dollar to my name / An acre of land, a troop to command, a dollop of fame” (Helpless)
Chain Rhyme occurs when the same rhyming sound is repeated across multiple lines.
Example from Hamilton: “Ev’ry action has its equal, opposite reactions
Thanks to Hamilton, our cab’net’s fractured into factions
Try not to crack under the stress, we’re breaking down like fractions
We smack each other in the press, and we don’t print retractions
I get no satisfaction witnessing his fits of passion
The way he primps and preens and dresses like the pits of fashion
Our poorest citizens, our farmers, live ration to ration
As Wall Street robs ’em blind in search of chips to cash in” (Washington on Your Side)
Imperfect (Slant/False) Rhyme is a similar but distinct rhyming sound, or in more detail, it’s when the sound preceding and/or following the accented vowel sound is slightly different.
Example from Hamilton: “If Washington isn’t gon’ listen / To disciplined dissidents, / this is the difference: / This kid is out!” (Washington on Your Side)
Assonance is a recurrence of the final accented vowel sound, with varied subsequent sounds.
Example from Hamilton: “I’mma get scholarship to King’s College / I probably shouldn’t brag, but dag, I amaze and astonish / The problem is I got a lot of brains, but no polish / I gotta holler just to be heard / With every word I drop knowledge” (My Shot)
Consonance is a recurring consonant sound within a line or verse.
Example from Hamilton: “He would’ve been dead or destitute / without a cent of restitution, started workin’…” (Alexander Hamilton)
Note: Also, see the example above for imperfect rhyme
Alliteration (Head Rhyme) is a subset of consonance, when the consonant sound that repeats is the first letter in a word.
Example from Hamilton: “The Ten dollar, founding father without a father got a lot farther by…” (Alexander Hamilton)
Internal Rhyme is found inside a line (or verse) instead of at the end.
Example from Hamilton: “And every day while slaves were being slaughtered and carted away / across the waves he struggled and kept his guard up” (Alexander Hamilton)
Masculine Rhyme is a rhyme where the stress is on the final syllable of the word.
Example from Hamilton: “You haven’t met him yet, you haven’t had the chance / ’cause he’s been kickin’ ass as the ambassador to France” (What’d I Miss?)
Feminine Rhyme is a rhyme where the stress is on the second-to-last syllable of the word.
Example from Hamilton: “The challenge: demand satisfaction /
If they apologize, no need for further action” (Ten Duel Commandments)
Multisyllabic Rhyme rhymes multiple syllables with multiple syllables.
Example from Hamilton: “Corruption’s such an old song that we can sing along in harmony / And nowhere is it stronger than in Albany” (Non-Stop).
Mosaic Rhyme occurs when a single multisyllabic word rhymes with multiple monosyllabic words.
Example from Hamilton: “Burr, your grievance is legitimate / I stand by what I said, every bit of it” (Your Obedient Servant)
Trailing Rhyme occurs when the first, stressed syllable of a two-syllable word or the second-to-last syllable of a longer word rhymes with a one-syllable word.
Example from Hamilton: “Look ’em in the eye, aim no higher /
…/ Then slowly and clearly aim your gun towards the sky — ” (Blow Us All Away)
Apocopated (Cut off) Rhyme is just the reverse of Trailing Rhyme, when a one-syllable word rhymes with the first, stressed syllable of a two-syllable word or with the second-to-last syllable of a longer word.
Example from Hamilton: “Inside, he was longing for something to be a part of / The brother was ready to beg, steal, borrow, or barter” (Alexander Hamilton)
Transformative (Forced) Rhyme alters pronunciation and delivery in order to create perfect-sounding rhymes. In the case below, a different accent is used to rhyme the same word with distinct ones.
Example from Hamilton: “I dream of life without a monarchy / The unrest in France will lead to ‘onarchy’? / ‘Onarchy? How you say, how you say, ‘anarchy?’ / When I fight, I make the other side panicky” (My Shot)
Identical Rhyme occurs when a word is rhymed with itself.
Example from Hamilton: [BURR] As I was saying, sir, I look forward to seeing your strategy play out /[…] /[WASHINGTON] Close the door on your way out (Right Hand Man)

Bonus, rhythm goes hand in hand with rhyme, so…

Meter: a comparatively regular rhythm in verse or poetry.
Metrical feet: a group of syllables that follow a pattern of stress.
Stressed Syllable: A syllable given emphasis: OR-phan
Unstressed Syllable: A syllable not given emphasis: OR-phan

Here are some common metrical feet:

Iamb: Unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable.
Example from Hamilton: “…wrote his first re-FRAIN…” (Alexander Hamilton).
Trochee: Stressed syllable followed by an unstressed syllable.
Example from Hamilton: “…Moved in with his COU-sin…” (Alexander Hamilton).
Anapest: two unstressed syllables followed by a stressed syllable.
Example from Hamilton: “I don’t underSTAND how you stand to the side” (Non-Stop)
Dactyl: a stressed syllable followed by two unstressed syllables.
Example from Hamilton: “WATching him GRABbin’ at POWer and KISSin’ it…” (Washington on Your Side).

A Rhyme Primer

With Examples From Hamilton

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Written by Rob Dods