Rhymes in English

Discussion in 'Questions about English' started by Alexx, Apr 16, 2009.

  1. GlennInFlorida

    GlennInFlorida Well-Known Member

    Just remember, y'all is always plural. It is never used by Southerners to address a single individual, despite the way actors on TV and in the movies (usually written by someone not from the South) use it. :wink:
     
  2. Sova

    Sova Well-Known Member

    Not true, at least not in Texas. Y'all can be used as a singular form there as well. Yeah, I know, I was confused, too, the first time some Texan called me "y'all," thinking, "Who else is he talking to? There's no one else here!" :lol:

    Also, note the difference between "y'all" and its always-plural form "all y'all." :)
     
  3. GlennInFlorida

    GlennInFlorida Well-Known Member

    Well, Texans can be particularly odd (I lived in Houston for six years so I know) and I really don't consider them Southerners. :)
     
  4. Sova

    Sova Well-Known Member

    HaHa! Yeah, that's why on their tourist ads, they use the slogan, "It's a whole other country."
     
  5. rsalc1

    rsalc1 Well-Known Member

    I had never heard that one before, and I live in the South (in Florida).
    That's funny: y'all can be singular and "all y'all" is its plural. :D
     
  6. Jana

    Jana Well-Known Member

    Getting back to the original topic of this thread - does anybody know a word rhyming with mercury or silver?
     
  7. rsalc1

    rsalc1 Well-Known Member

    Apparently there are no words that rhyme with mercury or silver.

    See http://www.rhymezone.com/r/rhyme.cgi
     
  8. Sova

    Sova Well-Known Member

    From OED, "dicky-dilver" (in dialect, another name for the periwinkle), and "chilver" (Old English, still used in some southern [England] dialects, for a ewe-lamb). Yeah, it's a stretch, I know. All the other entries are for "*ilver" are derivatives of "silver."

    I couldn't find one for "mercury."
     
  9. Jana

    Jana Well-Known Member

    Thank you both - and what about purple?
     
  10. rsalc1

    rsalc1 Well-Known Member

    For purple there are no perfect rhymes (no other English word ends in "rple"), however there are many rhymes for words ending in "ple".

    You can find them at: onelook.com/?w=*ple&scwo=1&sswo=1&scwo=1&sswo=0
     
  11. Jana

    Jana Well-Known Member

    And what about Miss Marple? I know it does not rhyme with purple, but I guess it is an English word :) .
     
  12. rsalc1

    rsalc1 Well-Known Member

    Miss Marple is a good rhyme for purple, better than some of the results of onelook.com :)
     
  13. Sova

    Sova Well-Known Member

    Again from OED:

    hirple: Scottish/northern dialect, to hobble
    curple: Scottish, the rear (esp. of a horse)
    besperple: Obs., to bespatter
    turple: Obs., to fall, tumble; Mid-Yorkshire dial., of an animal, to die

    I guess it just shows how much the English language varies from place to place.
     
  14. Ctyri koruny

    Ctyri koruny Well-Known Member

Share This Page