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rhythm

[ rith-uhm ]
/ ˈrɪð əm /
||
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noun

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How To Use ParallelismsWhen writers use very similar wording across several sentences or lines of poetry, it’s known as parallel sentence structure. Doing this creates rhythm and balance. Parallel sentence structures are also known as parallelisms. Simple parallelisms may be as short as words or phrases. More complex ones may combine entire clauses or sentences. Parallel sentence structures can highlight aspects of stories and poems in many ways. …
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RELATED WORDS

pattern, tempo, flow, pulse, swing, cadence, movement, cadency, uniformity, downbeat, rhyme, measure, meter, lilt, regularity, bounce, time, periodicity, metre

Nearby words

  1. rhynchophore,
  2. rhyolite,
  3. rhyolitic,
  4. rhys,
  5. rhys, jean,
  6. rhythm and blues,
  7. rhythm band,
  8. rhythm method,
  9. rhythm section,
  10. rhythm stick

Origin of rhythm

1550–60; < Latin rhythmus < Greek rhythmós; compare rheîn to flow
Related formsrhythm·less, adjectivenon·rhythm, noun
Can be confusedrhyme rhythm
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for rhythm

British Dictionary definitions for rhythm

rhythm

/ (ˈrɪðəm) /

noun

  1. the arrangement of the relative durations of and accents on the notes of a melody, usually laid out into regular groups (bars) of beats, the first beat of each bar carrying the stress
  2. any specific arrangement of such groupings; timequadruple rhythm
(in poetry)
  1. the arrangement of words into a more or less regular sequence of stressed and unstressed or long and short syllables
  2. any specific such arrangement; metre
(in painting, sculpture, architecture, etc) a harmonious sequence or pattern of masses alternating with voids, of light alternating with shade, of alternating colours, etc
any sequence of regularly recurring functions or events, such as the regular recurrence of certain physiological functions of the body, as the cardiac rhythm of the heartbeat
Derived Formsrhythmless, adjective

Word Origin for rhythm

C16: from Latin rhythmus, from Greek rhuthmos; related to rhein to flow
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for rhythm

rhythm

n.

1550s, "rhymed verse, metrical movement," from Latin rhythmus "movement in time," from Greek rhythmos "measured flow or movement, rhythm; proportion, symmetry; arrangement, order; form, shape, wise, manner; soul, disposition," related to rhein "to flow," from PIE root *sreu- "to flow" (see rheum). Rhythm method of birth control attested from 1936. Rhythm and blues, U.S. music style, is from 1949 (first in "Billboard").

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Medicine definitions for rhythm

rhythm

[ rĭð′əm ]

n.

Movement or variation characterized by the regular recurrence or alternation of different quantities or conditions, as in the heartbeat.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Culture definitions for rhythm

rhythm

The “beat” of music; the regular pattern of long and short notes. Certain kinds of music, such as blues or marches, have a very characteristic rhythm. Rhythm, harmony, and melody are elements of music.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.