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Definition 2024


cynghanedd

cynghanedd

English

Noun

cynghanedd (usually uncountable, plural cynganeddion)

  1. (prosody) The complex system of internal assonance, alliteration and rhyme in Welsh strict-metre poetry.
    • 1948 (revised 1952), Robert Graves, The White Goddess, Faber & Faber 1999, p. 14:
      Only certain epithets and metaphors were authorized; themes were similarly restricted, metres fixed, and Cynghanedd, the repetitive use of consonantal sequences with variation of vowels, became a burdensome obsession.
    • Britannica Online Encyclopedia:
      There are four fundamental types of cynghanedd, but within these there are a number of refinements and variations. When skillfully used, cynghanedd is capable of conveying an almost unlimited variety of subtle effects.