How we change what others think, feel, believe and do

Rhyme

Techniques > General persuasion > Using repetition > Rhyme

Description | Example | Discussion | See also

Description

Use words that rhyme, repeating sounds across multiple words.

Use a complete poetic meter or just words with similar sounding ending scattered through the sentences.

The ending of words that 'rhyme' can be exact tonal matches or can be just similar.

You can also use internal rhyme, where letters and sounds are repeated across a sentence.

Example

Are you going out tonight? If I come, things will be alright.

Are you going out tonight? Knowing it's right is good, of course.

Are you going out tonight? Please don't stay out too late.

Are you going out tonight? How far will you go? Will you get to Mike's?

Discussion

The more like a poem the words are, the less natural it will seem. This should be a deliberate decision. For more subtle communication, scatter the rhyming words randomly through the speech or use a repeating meter but do not use words that exactly match.

Shakespeare often ended major speeches with a rhyming couplet -- two lines that rhyme and which spell out the key point.

The words or syllables that rhyme may receive emphasis, making them stand out and pulling their connection together.

One of the most complex forms of rhyme is found in the Welsh cynghanedd.