Assonance is a literary device that creates musicality and emphasis by repeating vowel sounds within nearby words, while the surrounding consonants may differ. Understanding an example of assonance helps readers appreciate how poets, songwriters, and prose writers shape the rhythm and mood of their language. This article explores the definition, distinguishes assonance from related sound patterns, provides plentiful examples from classic and contemporary works, explains how to spot it, and offers practical tips for using it effectively in your own writing.
What Is Assonance?
Assonance occurs when two or more words in close proximity share the same vowel sound but start with different consonant sounds. Day to day, the repeated vowel can appear anywhere in the word—initial, medial, or final—but the effect is strongest when the stressed syllables align. Unlike rhyme, which matches both vowel and ending consonant sounds, assonance focuses solely on the vowel quality Small thing, real impact..
Example of assonance:
“Hear the mellow wedding bells.”
Here, the long e sound in hear, mellow, wedding, and bells creates a soft, lingering resonance.
The term itself comes from the Latin assonare, meaning “to sound alike.” When writers employ assonance, they often aim to evoke a particular feeling—melancholy, joy, tension, or serenity—by tuning the auditory texture of their lines.
How Assonance Differs from Alliteration and Consonance
While assonance, alliteration, and consonance all manipulate sound, each targets a different element:
| Device | What Repeats | Typical Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Assonance | Vowel sounds | Internal melody, mood setting |
| Alliteration | Initial consonant sounds | Emphasis, tongue‑twisting vigor |
| Consonance | Consonant sounds (anywhere) | Subtle cohesion, rhythmic drive |
Alliteration example: “Peter picked a peck of pickled peppers.”
Consonance example: “Straight street seems slightly sloping.”
Notice that assonance can coexist with the other devices. A line may feature both alliteration and assonance, amplifying its sonic impact Worth keeping that in mind..
Examples of Assonance in Poetry
Poets have long relied on assonance to deepen imagery and control pacing. Below are notable illustrations from various eras.
Classic Poetry
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Edgar Allan Poe – “The Bells”
“Hear the sledges with the bells—
Silver bells! What a world of merriment their melody foretells!”
The recurring e sound (hear, sledges, bells, silver, bells, merriment, melody, foretells) creates a chiming, almost hypnotic effect And that's really what it comes down to. Simple as that.. -
William Blake – “The Tyger”
“Tyger! Tyger! burning bright
In the forests of the night.”
The long i vowel in Tyger, burning, bright, forests, night adds a fierce, glowing quality. -
Emily Dickinson – “Because I could not stop for Death”
“We passed the school, where children strove
At recess—in the ring—”
The short a sound in passed, school, children, strove, recess, ring yields a steady, marching rhythm Small thing, real impact. Surprisingly effective..
Contemporary Poetry
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Seamus Heaney – “Digging”
“Between my finger and my thumb
The squat pen rests; snug as a gun.”
The short u vowel in finger, thumb, squat, rests, snug, gun binds the tactile image. -
Amanda Gorman – “The Hill We Climb” (inaugural poem)
“We will rise from the gold‑limbed west
We will rise from the hills we climb.”
The long i in rise, gold‑limbed, west, rise, hills, climb reinforces the uplifting theme Most people skip this — try not to. Took long enough..
Examples of Assonance in Prose and Song Lyrics
Assonance isn’t confined to verse; novelists and lyricists use it to make prose more lyrical and hooks more memorable.
Prose
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F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby
“So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.”
The long e sound (beat, boats, against, borne, ceaselessly) mimics the relentless tide. -
Toni Morrison, Beloved
“Freeing yourself was one thing; claiming ownership of that freed self was another.”
The repeated ee sound (freeing, claiming, freed) underscores the struggle for self‑possession.
Song Lyrics
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Bob Dylan – “Like a Rolling Stone”
“How does it feel
To be on your own
With no direction home
Like a complete unknown?”
The short e in feel, on, own, no, direction, home, complete, unknown creates a plaintive, questioning tone. -
Adele – “Rolling in the Deep”
“We could have had it all
Rolling in the deep”
The short a in had, all, rolling, deep adds a driving, percussive pulse Simple, but easy to overlook.. -
Lin-Manuel Miranda – “My Shot” (Hamilton)
“I am not throwing away my shot”
The short o in *
