Rhyming dictionary
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- This article is about a type of reference work used in composing poetry. For the special type of Chinese phonological dictionary, see Rime dictionary.
A rhyming dictionary is a specialist dictionary designed for use in writing poetry and lyrics. In a rhyming dictionary, words are categorized into equivalence classes that consist of words which rhyme with one another. They will also typically support several different kinds of rhymes, and possibly also alliteration as well.
Because rhyming dictionaries are based on pronunciation, they are difficult to compile. Words and rhyming patterns change their pronunciation over time and between dialects. Rhyming dictionaries for Old English, Elizabethan poetry, or Standard English would have quite different content.
As rhyming dictionaries arrange the whole language according to its word terminations, they can be useful in solving crossword puzzles.