How to make lyrics rhyme?

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It’s good to practice recognizing which words rhyme with which. Say a word aloud, then try to think of other words that rhyme. Check with rhyming dictionaries. Practice creating verses simply around those rhyming words. Later, you’ll find that while composing lyrics, words will come to you more easily. Also, experiment with sentence structure. Sometimes, if you switch around the order of the words in a sentence, a rhyme will just pop out at you.

To add some extra spice to your lyrics, try throwing in a slant rhyme every so often. That way, your rhymes don’t sound too forced.

In case you aren’t aware, the words in red are links to other sites that can help you. Good luck!

Welcome!

You have to work back and forth between the idea you want to express and available rhyming pairs. Not all words have rhymes. Sometimes the need for a rhyme will cause a new idea to pop to mind. And sometimes you will find that you have to reword a line or two because you just can’t make the rhymes work.

Avoid end-line words that are going to lead you straight into deadly cliches such as love-above, together-weather, moon-June, and fire-desire.

(And, just for me, don’t reach for together-forever unless you are utterly desperate.)

Rhyming just takes a bit of practice,
In time you’ll sit almost listless,
Wondering how there ever was a time,
You couldn’t find a rhyme.

“and then” and “again” go nicely together because the vowel sound of “a” in “and” and “again” creates assonance and the “en” “ain” create consonance – if I’m not mistaken.

Assonance (matching vowel sounds), consonance (matching consonant sounds), and alliteration all work nicely together… I’m not really sure what the trick is, @Jeruba‘s right though, play around with it, have fun with it.

I have the opposite problem, I find it extremely easy to write lyrics, but have problem with the music (and I have been a professional songwriter for 20 years).

I could help you out if you want.

The logic is easy. When you hear the word “again” what other sounds come to mind? Ignore spelling. Here are some:

then (like you said)
pen
hen
ten
lend, bend, send (not as strong, but you can get away with it)

Sometimes the second word is good but won’t rhyme. All you have to do is change the fist one. Here’s a simplistic example.

“I was walking down the street
Wind blowing in my face
A dog barking at my feet”
....now what?

I could continue with “and I wished you were there”, but “there” doesn’t rhyme with “face”. Tough luck. But hey, it rhymes with “hair”!

So here it is:
“I was walking down the street
Wind blowing in my hair
A dog barking at my feet
And I wished you were there”

Just a simplistic example I came up with while writing the post, but it’s the basic logic behind all rhymes. Try it out. And always listen to the SOUND of the words, not their spelling.

Here’s one I like (from a real song I wrote)

”...as her clothes are getting drier but her eyes are not
And as she sees him blurred and damp there,
How could she have forgotten?”

Even though at first sight there is no rhyme, when singing, I say “not and” together. Which actually rhymes with “forgotten”.

:)

sorry link was broken so I removed it. But I can send you that song if you want

You have to be willing to revise. It’s not a question of finding the perfect word in the second line to rhyme with the word you chose at the end of the first line, but of finding a pair of words that rhyme and express the idea you want.

There’s a reason poets who write well in formal structures like sonnets and villanelles are highly regarded. It’s not easy to do. But if you read some of the critical studies of poets like Robert Frost and W. B. Yeats, who are masterful at writing rhymes that sound natural, you realize that they revise, revise, revise, revise, revise.

It won’t take any time
For you to learn to rhyme
First, you have to start
to give your songs some heart

I just made a rhyme,
Like I do all the time.
Have yourself a lime,
Then you can rhyme.

SRSLY, just eat some limes, and you’ll be droppin’ rhymes like Jay-z. I’m forrizzle.

Okay, in all seriousness. Just start going at it. At least that’s the way it is for me. Whenever I hear a word, my brain instantly searches for something that rhymes with it. I don’t really know why, but it’s something that I’ve just done for as long as I remember. Some are really, really, dumb, but then every now and again, I’ll throw out something amazing. The trick to rhyming is to just go at it, and sooner or later, you’ll get a word that fits with the rest of the song.

these are all great answers!
thanks guys.

try this

Slow and Steady: Remember good words!

Start taking mental note of words and ideas that you like. Focus on them. Write them downa dn have them in your pocket on a sheet. As you live your life, take note of what people say in books in good films in other poetry (also, i guess in the news and on tv) and even the monologues going on in your own head. Eventually you’ll find new ideas that happen to rhyme with the one word you’re looking for.

Don’t stress about it. Enjoy the ride. It will give way more purpose to your daily interactions with others.