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Mezzo-rhyme is an imperfect rhyme where the final consonant sound matches, but the vowel sounds do not. It was first used by poets from Iceland, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. It is often confused with pararima and assonance. Mezzo-rhyme can be used to create a pause or shock the reader, and it gives poets creative freedom.
In mezzo-rhyme, the final consonant sound of a word is the same as the word it is meant to rhyme with, but the final vowel sounds are not the same, as in the words “sun” and “moon.” For this reason it is considered an imperfect rhyme. It is also called oblique rhyme or oblique rhyme. The Icelandic, Irish, Scots and Welsh are recognized as the first to use half-rhyme, and it was a common feature in their classic poems. In English, mezzo-rhyme was first used by Henry Vaughan in the 1600s, but it didn’t become popular until used by poets such as Emily Dickinson, Gerard Manley Hopkins, and Wilfred Owen in the 1800s, or William Butler Yeats in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
Half rhyme only applies to words that have matching final consonant sounds, such as “cold” and “bald,” which is why it’s considered a form of consonance. It is often confused with pararima and assonance. Both of these literary devices are similar to mezza rhyme, with only subtle differences. In the main feature of the pararhyme, both initial and final consonants have the same sound such as “red” and “reed”. When using assonance, only vowel sounds match, as in “hot” and “bod.”
A poet might use mezza rima for several reasons. As with other poetic devices, it forces the reader to pause and notice the difference in the words. Sometimes it even makes the reader re-read the passage to figure out why the poem sounds “wrong.” This is because mezza rhyme is usually used with other poetic devices, causing the reader to form an expectation. When oblique rhyme is used, it breaks that expectation and essentially shocks the senses.
The sometimes harsh and off-key nature of this rhyming method is occasionally applied to fit the mood of the poem. Eccentric and nonconformist poems are well suited to the type of rhyme as the main feature. Poems that represent a character’s thought or quote might also use mezzo-rhyme because it flows more like natural conversation, since it’s not typical for a person to think or speak in perfect rhyme.
Using this method in rhyming also gives a poet greater creative freedom. It allows a poet to match one word with another when there is no real rhyme available. This use of creative license is commonly used by modern poets and rap musicians.
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