September is filled with many reasons to celebrate and some of the celebrations have “no rhyme or reason”.
National No Rhyme (Nor Reason) Day, observed annually on September 1, actually celebrates words in the English language which do not rhyme with any other words. Also known as refractory rhymes, these are words that poets try to avoid using in verse.
The unofficial holiday is dedicated to the English language idiom, no rhyme or reason, which means something that occurs without any purpose or explanation.
The idiom is thought to have first found its way in the English language through the 1460 book The Boke of Nurture by John Russell, though it is most famous for its appearance in the 1590 Shakespearean play Comedy of Errors. It once again showed up in Shakespeare’s 1600 play, As You Like It.
The holiday is also known in the United States as National No Rhyme or Reason Day or National No Rhyme (Nor Reason) Day.
How to Celebrate?
Do you need a rhyme or a reason to celebrate this fun holiday? Here are some ways you can honor this expression:
- What about celebrating this holiday by tapping into your creative side? Spend the day writing free verse – poetry without any rhyme.
- Have a no rhyming contest with a friend or a co-worker. Find words that do not rhyme with anything else. Whoever finds the most words wins a copy of a thesaurus or a dictionary!
- Do something nice for someone for no rhyme or reason. Sometimes the most generous gestures are the ones that are undertaken without any cause or purpose.
Did You Know…
…that in literature and poetry, words that are spelled similarly but pronounced differently are called eye rhymes?
Some unrhymable words in the English language include:
- Orange
- Month
- Silver
- Spirit
- Chimney
- Purple
- Woman
HOW TO OBSERVE
Make a list of words that you believe cannot be rhymed, and check if you are correct. Use #NoRhymeNorReason Day to post on social media.
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