The Chambers Rhyming Dictionary was first published in 2003 and now, five years later, this new edition offers expanded contents. There are over 35,000 rhymes, arranged in over 2,600 rhyme patterns including idiomatic phrases and common proper names. It retains the preface from Benjamin Zephaniah and maintains its usefulness for professional and amateur poets or school children and anyone in‐between who may find the need for such a reference book. As a reference book its value could perhaps be considered marginal, but it would make a very accessible, cheap and fun addition to many reference collections. Advertisers, writers and students wanting to make a statement would find it useful, as would anyone looking for a new way in which to create a phrase or statement; it may even come in useful for crossword setters and solvers.
Following on from the preface there are some brief explanatory notes about the importance of rhyme and its use in poetry – to give a poem shape and structure and to make it instantly recognisable. It also explains exactly what rhyme is before looking at some common rhyme schemes and then explaining how to use the lists in the book. This preliminary information indicates that the intended audience for the book is indeed children of school age or perhaps adults embarking on their first foray into poetry writing. This should not be considered a drawback, rather it is a positive recommendation, for there are not many books of this format designed for a younger audience and it is refreshing that this one should have such a broad appeal. Readers could perhaps compare this volume to the earlier edition or to other rhyming dictionaries available from Penguin and Bloomsbury. This Chambers new edition and the Bloomsbury Rhyming Dictionary (RR 2009/21) are the most current and accessible available at the present time.
The contents themselves are easy to access for they have been divided up according to the nineteen different vowel sounds in the English language and every word that has been included is listed in the index at the back. Rhyming words are easy to find, and the variety is quite astounding. From the extremely unusual, such as polyurethane, Marquis de Sade, machine‐readable, in vitro fertilization, hurdy‐gurdy and even expurgator, to common names and place names there is certain to be an entry for almost every possible poem or rhyme that one could desire to write. Quite why some of the words need rhymes is perhaps not for this reviewer to decide but it is an interesting question to consider.
The variety and depth of the English language is explored and presented in this accessible resource; it is easy to access, handle and use and above all it is fun. Anyone needing a rhyme is likely to be looking for something that is fun and entertaining and this dictionary is certain to provide exactly that.
