assonance

views updated

as·so·nance / ˈasənəns/ • n. in poetry, the repetition of the sound of a vowel or diphthong in nonrhyming stressed syllables near enough to each other for the echo to be discernible (e.g., penitence, reticence).Compare with alliteration.DERIVATIVES: as·so·nant adj.as·so·nate / -ˌnāt/ v.

More From encyclopedia.com