Tools for Poets - Rhyming dictionaries & other references
Need a rhyming word for the line you’re working on? The outline for a poetic form you want to try? We’ve selected links to the online tools you need when you’re polishing a poem.
A Poet’s Ideal Library: Dictionaries/General References
Dictionaries and general reference works that belong in a poet's library, suggested by Jim Finnegan and the members of the NewPoetry discussion list.
Dictionaries and general reference works that belong in a poet's library, suggested by Jim Finnegan and the members of the NewPoetry discussion list.
Alcor Rhyming Dictionaries
Alcor is a small Australian firm that has created rhyming dictionaries in 20 languages, from Afrikaans to Yiddish, all of which you can try online.
Alcor is a small Australian firm that has created rhyming dictionaries in 20 languages, from Afrikaans to Yiddish, all of which you can try online.
AnalogX Rhyme
There are lots of system & music tools at AnalogX, including this free, downloadable Windows program which will suggest rhymes for any of 100,000 words.
There are lots of system & music tools at AnalogX, including this free, downloadable Windows program which will suggest rhymes for any of 100,000 words.
Ansme.com Rhyming Dictionary
The dictionaries at Ansme.com will give you rhyming words sorted according to number of syllables, definitions, words with similar sound patterns, antonyms, synonyms & other relations among words, or translations of single words.
The dictionaries at Ansme.com will give you rhyming words sorted according to number of syllables, definitions, words with similar sound patterns, antonyms, synonyms & other relations among words, or translations of single words.
Glossary of Poetic Forms
If you’re into sonnets or pantoums, haiku or limericks, visit our glossary, which is stocked with concise definitions of various kinds of formal poetries, with links for further reading.
If you’re into sonnets or pantoums, haiku or limericks, visit our glossary, which is stocked with concise definitions of various kinds of formal poetries, with links for further reading.
Glossary of Poetic Terms
Robert G. Shubinski, creator of Bob’s Byway, offers an extensive cross-referenced dictionary of poetry lingo.
Robert G. Shubinski, creator of Bob’s Byway, offers an extensive cross-referenced dictionary of poetry lingo.
Online Etymology Dictionary
Douglas Harper’s Online Etymology Dictionary is a labor of love, “a map of the wheel-ruts of modern English” compiled from a whole library of source dictionaries -- a free & wonderful resource for musing poets who wish to follow their words’ trails through historical usage.
Douglas Harper’s Online Etymology Dictionary is a labor of love, “a map of the wheel-ruts of modern English” compiled from a whole library of source dictionaries -- a free & wonderful resource for musing poets who wish to follow their words’ trails through historical usage.
Online Rhyming Dictionary
WriteExpress would like to sell you the CD version of their rhyming dictionary, but will let you use their online rhymer free. Bookmark this page for the next time you are stumped for the right rhyme: end rhymes, beginning rhymes, double or triple rhymes are all here.
WriteExpress would like to sell you the CD version of their rhyming dictionary, but will let you use their online rhymer free. Bookmark this page for the next time you are stumped for the right rhyme: end rhymes, beginning rhymes, double or triple rhymes are all here.
Visual Thesaurus
The Visual Thesaurus offers the same browsing pleasures as Roget’s, but rather than flipping pages to follow the trails of related words, you watch the words dance on your screen & explore the branching linguistic paths by clicking. (This is a commercial site, intended to sell subscriptions, but you can try out the online edition for free.)
The Visual Thesaurus offers the same browsing pleasures as Roget’s, but rather than flipping pages to follow the trails of related words, you watch the words dance on your screen & explore the branching linguistic paths by clicking. (This is a commercial site, intended to sell subscriptions, but you can try out the online edition for free.)