Quantcast
Words that rhyme with offense — 2137 rhymes by quality | Rhyme Land
RhymeLand

the rhymes and the songs that used them

Words that rhyme withoffense

masculine
Masculine this word

Ends on a stressed syllable — a one-syllable rhyme, or a multisyllable word whose primary stress lands last. The rhyme hits the final beat, the way most rhymes in songs do.

Examples

love · dove · today · believe · forgot

Feminine

Ends with an unstressed syllable trailing the stressed one — always at least two syllables. The rhyme lands a beat earlier and trails off softly.

Examples

river · mother · follow · breaking · mountain

Masculine and feminine endings rarely sing together (the rhyme lands on a different beat), so they're kept apart here.

 vowel EH coda N·S
20
What it is
  1. The syllables' vowel sounds are identical.
  2. The sounds after the vowels (if any) are identical.
  3. The syllables begin differently.
How it feels
  1. Perfect
  2. Family
  3. Additive / Subtractive
  4. Assonance
  5. Consonance
resolvedunresolved
Example

cat / hat — same AE vowel, same T ending

Source
Berklee College of Music's songwriting method (Pat Pattison)
1 syllable
sense18tense3hencepence2dense1pense1thencewhence
2 syllables
intense1expense2suspense2incense1pretense2commence1immense1condensedispense
3 syllables
commonsensefrankincenserecompense
65
What it is
  1. The syllables' vowel sounds are identical.
  2. The sounds after the vowels come from the same phonetic family (e.g. T↔D, P↔B, M↔N).
  3. The syllables begin differently.
How it feels
  1. Perfect
  2. Family
  3. Additive / Subtractive
  4. Assonance
  5. Consonance
resolvedunresolved
Example

cat / pad — AE vowel; T and D are both stops

Family chart
PlosivesFricativesNasals
VoicedbdgvTHzzhjmnng
Unvoicedptkfthsshch

Each column is a family pair — same place + manner, only the voicing differs.

Source
Berklee College of Music's songwriting method (Pat Pattison)
1 syllable
french2bench3trench2stench1wrench2clenchdrenchmenschquenchtenchtenthwenchbenz6gems4lens2hens2pens2
2 syllables
entrenchretrenchworkbenchwavelength1bullpens1cayennes1cheyennescondemns2contemnsdoyennesginsengsmayhems1
3 syllables
atms1businessmens1cyclamensdiademsrpms
4 syllables
comediennesdiltiazems
37
What it is
  1. The syllables' vowel sounds are identical.
  2. The sounds after the vowels are identical, with one extra consonant on one side.
  3. The syllables begin differently.
How it feels
  1. Perfect
  2. Family
  3. Additive / Subtractive
  4. Assonance
  5. Consonance
resolvedunresolved
Example

love / loved — extra D on one side

Source
Berklee College of Music's songwriting method (Pat Pattison)
1 syllable
benched3cairnescairnscleansedclencheddrenchedelmeselmsfencedfrenched2
2 syllables
against3avengedcommencedcondenseddispensedentrenchedexpensedincensed
3 syllables
overwhelmsrecompensed
214
What it is
  1. The syllables' vowel sounds are identical.
  2. The sounds after the vowels are identical, but one side stops one consonant earlier.
  3. The syllables begin differently.
How it feels
  1. Perfect
  2. Family
  3. Additive / Subtractive
  4. Assonance
  5. Consonance
resolvedunresolved
Example

cried / cry — one side missing the final D

Source
Berklee College of Music's songwriting method (Pat Pattison)
1 syllable
them89then97death82men59yes36breath60when48dress44mess43says22guess29less22ten17pen22edge9flesh15press8ben4heh2fresh5bless1jeff2chef3stress4deaf3stretch2ken1bethfetchjessyen2den4chess1SethjengwenGlennChenles2tessness2sketchpledge1DES3stem3wesgem3hen2ledge3hem2meth2Zen1bess1clef1deng1geoff1glen1hedge1Penn1pres1ren1sen1wedge1wren1wretch1benneBrenchengchescrechecressdevdredgeetchfenfengfessfezfledgegenHessHessehethJEMjeongketchkvetchLEMlenlevmeshphlegm
2 syllables
again332address9success6amen6confess9unlessprocess3progress3accessexpress3impress2distress3possess4excess6caress3undress2condemn2flores1Macbeth1baez1bullpen1cayenne1Cortez1digress1inez1Juarez1largesse1mayhem1obsess1redress1refresh1abscessafreshaggressallegeassessBelemBoulezCheyennecontemncortegeCortesdalethdepressdoyenneegressenmeshfinessefluoresceginsengheaddresshomestretchhorsefleshJerezKhrushchevKievmaglevMontezNatchezNegevnoblesseoppressoutguessplaypenprofessrecessrepressSkopjestraightedgesuppresstorres
3 syllables
Bethlehem1pirouette1ambien1businessmen1nonetheless1acquiesceangrinessBangladeshbashfulnessCardizemcarefulnesscoalesceconvalescecutting-edgecyclamendiademdispossessfaithfulnessgrumpinessJimenezletterpressMarrakechmegadeathoverdresspensivenessreassessrepossessshibbolethTolkienUNICEFwatercress
4 syllables
nevertheless1comediennediltiazemParisienneViramuneviramunes
1748
What it is
  1. The syllables' vowel sounds are the same.
  2. The consonants after the vowel are not phonetically related.
  3. The syllables begin differently.
How it feels
  1. Perfect
  2. Family
  3. Additive / Subtractive
  4. Assonance
  5. Consonance
resolvedunresolved
Example

love / dot — both AH, but V and T have nothing in common

Assonance rhymes always have consonants after the vowels, but the consonants cannot be phonetically related.

Source
Berklee College of Music's songwriting method (Pat Pattison)
1 syllable
there278head219said146bed169well142friend133dead149end125hair131air127friends106care113hell87else57tell75tears30left62best63yet55rest60get32red49fair45chest48where26met39ends36chair38help32read21neck28west29went23share27stairs28bear24fell28scared17bell24sex20next13legs17lead16test20wear15heads21wet20prayer21cell12check14set13spend11health19bet14bread19felt11step13square15spent12spell18stare24meant8bend19gets8rent13cares14sent10strength6tear3sell8smell6shelf33self14their2leg8eggs7kept6dare4dressed8send5
2 syllables
myself100yourself52forget44hotel31instead39ahead21nowhere18somewhere14pretend26regret25himself15itself12respect16perfect6weekend8herself7themselves6upset9affair9girlfriend2expect4aware5protect3prepared5accept2upstairs1defend8except1boyfriend1arrest2suspect1nightmare5accent4event4effect5correct2depends4subject2sunset8downstairs2preparerequest2events4suggestyourselves2percent2motel8collect2impressed1footsteps3direct1farewell5attend3affairs3intend1attempt1depressed5effects3doorbell2despair14
3 syllables
everywhere35anywhere22ourselves13cigarette20president5cigarettes13internet8underwear3represent2recommend1personnel1juliet3carousel4overhead6millionaire7silhouette4billionaire4represents2isabelmillionaires2parapet2architect1clientele2comprehend1disrespect2jezebel1overwhelmed3riverbed3unprepared3bayonet2citadel2debonair1Delaware2dialect2disconnect1disrepair2juliette1recollect2unawares2Roosevelt
4 syllables
mademoisellemademoiselles1unparalleled1aftereffectaftereffectsAix-la-Chapelleconcessionaireconcessionairesdisorientdisorientsinterconnectinterconnectsmaterielmaterielsmisrepresentmisrepresentsoverextendoverextendsoverprotect
5 syllables
antipersonnel
53
What it is
  1. The syllables' vowel sounds are different.
  2. The sounds after the vowels are identical.
  3. The syllables begin differently.
How it feels
  1. Perfect
  2. Family
  3. Additive / Subtractive
  4. Assonance
  5. Consonance
resolvedunresolved
Example

love / live — both end in V; AH versus IH

Source
Berklee College of Music's songwriting method (Pat Pattison)
1 syllable
dance37chance42once20since9prince6France8vincelance1hans1glance7bouncetrance3ounce1stance1bons1bunceflouncemincenancenoncepounceprancequince
2 syllables
romance14advance5convinceresponse3announcefinance2expanse2pronounce1sundance1askancedenounceenhanceensconceevincefreelanceperchancerenounce
3 syllables
circumstance8happenstancemispronouncenonchalancePort-au-PrincerefinanceRenaissancesynonyms
22
What it is
  1. The syllables' vowel sounds are identical.
  2. The sounds after the vowels (if any) are identical.
  3. The syllables begin the same — repetition, not a rhyme.
How it feels

Off the rhyme scale — identity is repetition, not resolution. Shown so you can spot it, not reach for it.

Example

fuse / confuse — both stressed syllables are 'fuse'

Source
Berklee College of Music's songwriting method (Pat Pattison)
1 syllable
fence13
2 syllables
defense1defence3fences3fencing
3 syllables
self-defenceself-defenseoffensive1offenses1defenses1defensive1defences3defensives1offensives1
4 syllables
defensibledefensivelydefensiveness
5 syllables
counteroffensivecounteroffensivesindefensible

“offense” at line end — from real songs

And you maim when you're on offenseBut you kill when you're on defense
— Fiona Apple, “Fetch the Bolt Cutters” · rhymes offense / defense
And a horrible offenseWell that's the way we do things in West Memphis
— Lucinda Williams, “West Memphis” · rhymes offense / memphis

How to read the 2137 results

Tiers follow Pat Pattison's stability scale — pick the resolution your line needs, not just the closest sound. Bold words are common in lyrics; a struck-through word with a cliché flag is an overworked pair; a vermilion dot counts how often the pair appears at line end in our corpus of real songs.

Perfect rhyme 20
Same stressed vowel, same sounds after it, different beginning. Full resolution — the strongest closure a rhyme can give a line.
Family rhyme 65
The consonants after the vowel are swapped for phonetic siblings — T↔D, M↔N, S↔Z. Nearly as stable as perfect rhyme, with far more word choices.
Additive 37
Same vowel, but one word carries an extra consonant after the shared ending. The added sound softens the landing slightly.
Subtractive 214
Same vowel, but one word stops a consonant early. A slightly clipped, softer resolution than perfect rhyme.
Assonance 1748
Only the stressed vowel matches; the consonants after it are unrelated. Loose and open — useful when a section should stay unresolved.
Consonance 53
The vowels differ but the ending consonants match. The faintest echo of all — texture rather than closure.
Identity 22
The whole stressed syllable repeats, beginning included. That's repetition, not rhyme — the line echoes instead of resolving.