rhyme

rhyme
\ \ [12] Etymologically, rhyme and rhythm are the same word. Both go back to medieval Latin rythmusrhythm’, but whereas rhythm has reached us almost unchanged, rhyme has come via a branch line. The sort of accented verse to which the medieval Latin word was applied commonly rhymed, and so when rythmus passed into early Old French as *ritme, it carried connotations of ‘rhyming’ with it. This later developed to rime, and when English borrowed it as rime, it still contained the notion of ‘rhythm’; but by the 13th century ‘rhyme’ was becoming its main meaning. The spelling rhyme, which emerged around 1600, represents a conscious partial return to the word’s ultimate ancestors, Latin rhythmus and Greek rhuthmós.
\ \ Cf.RHYTHM

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • Rhyme — Rhyme, n. [OE. ryme, rime, AS. r[=i]m number; akin to OHG. r[=i]m number, succession, series, G. reim rhyme. The modern sense is due to the influence of F. rime, which is of German origin, and originally the same word.] [The Old English spelling… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • rhyme — [rīm] n. [ME rime < OFr < rimer, to rhyme, prob. < Frank * rim, row, series, akin to OE, OHG rim, series, number < IE * rei (> OIr rim, number) < base * are , to join, fit (> ART1, RATIO, RITE): form infl. by assoc. with L… …   English World dictionary

  • Rhyme — Rhyme, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Rhymed};p. pr. & vb. n. {Rhyming}.] [OE. rimen, rymen, AS. r[=i]man to count: cf. F. rimer to rhyme. See {Rhyme}, n.] 1. To make rhymes, or verses. Thou shalt no longer ryme. Chaucer. [1913 Webster] There marched the… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Rhyme — Rhyme, v. t. 1. To put into rhyme. Sir T. Wilson. [1913 Webster] 2. To influence by rhyme. [1913 Webster] Hearken to a verser, who may chance Rhyme thee to good. Herbert. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • rhyme — [n] poetry in which lines end with like sounds alliteration, beat, cadence, couplet, doggerel, half rhyme, harmony, iambic pentameter, measure, meter, nursery rhyme, ode, poem, poesy, poetry, rhythm, rune, slant rhyme, song, tune, verse, vowel… …   New thesaurus

  • rhyme — ► NOUN 1) correspondence of sound between words or the endings of words, especially when used in poetry. 2) a short poem with rhyming lines. 3) rhyming poetry or verse. 4) a word with the same sound as another. ► VERB 1) (of a word, syllable, or… …   English terms dictionary

  • Rhyme — A rhyme is a repetition of similar sounds in two or more words and is most often used in poetry and songs. The word rhyme may also refer to a short poem, such as a rhyming couplet or other brief rhyming poem such as nursery rhymes. Contents 1… …   Wikipedia

  • rhyme — rhymer, n. /ruym/, n., v., rhymed, rhyming. n. 1. identity in sound of some part, esp. the end, of words or lines of verse. 2. a word agreeing with another in terminal sound: Find is a rhyme for mind and womankind. 3. verse or poetry having… …   Universalium

  • rhyme — rhyme1 [raım] n [Date: 1100 1200; : Old French; Origin: rime, probably from Latin rhythmus; RHYTHM] 1.) a short poem or song, especially for children, using words that rhyme ▪ a collection of traditional rhymes with illustrations →↑nursery rhyme… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • rhyme — [[t]ra͟ɪm[/t]] rhymes, rhyming, rhymed 1) V RECIP ERG If one word rhymes with another or if two words rhyme, they have a very similar sound. Words that rhyme with each other are often used in poems. [V with n] June always rhymes with moon in old… …   English dictionary

  • rhyme — I UK [raɪm] / US noun Word forms rhyme : singular rhyme plural rhymes * 1) [countable] a short poem, often for children, that has lines ending in the same sound 2) a) [countable] a word that ends with the same sound as another word rhyme for: Can …   English dictionary

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