Rhyming Compounds
Alphabetical Order
This page contains alphaDictionary's current glossary of rhyming compounds organized in alphabetical order. Asterisks mark the latest additions to our ever-growing glossary. For details, read Dr. Goodword's essay on sing-songy rhyming compounds in English. Click here for the same glossary listed by category.
| English Rhyming Compounds | ||
| Compound | Definition | Type |
| argle-bargle | Argument or fight | Rhyming |
| artsy-fartsy | Fake-art | Rhyming |
| backpack | Satchel carried on back | Rhyming |
| bigwig | Important person | Rhyming |
| black-jack | Card game | Rhyming |
| bogo | Buy one, get one (free) | Rhyming |
| boogie-woogie | Fast jazz dance | Rhyming |
| boob tube | Television set | Rhyming |
| bric-a-brac | Cheap decorative objects | Alliterative |
| candy-shmandy | Candy my eye! | SH-Rule |
| car-shmar | Car my eye! | SH-Rule |
| cha-ching | The sound of a cash register. | Alliterative |
| chit-chat | Idle talk | Alliterative |
| chitter-chatter | Idle talk | Alliterative |
| chug-a-lug | To drink down in one swallow | Rhyming |
| claptrap | Cheap talk | Rhyming |
| clickety-clack | Heavy clicking | Complex |
| cock-a-doodle-doo | Rooster sound | Complex |
| cock-a-leekie | Chicken-leek soup | Complex |
| Coco | French nickname | Duplicative |
| couscous | Steamed semolina | Duplicative |
| dadaism | Absurdist art | Duplicative |
| dilly-dally | Dawdle, move slowly | Alliterative |
| dingaling | Bell sound; foolish person | Complex |
| ding-dong | Bell sound | Alliterative |
| doodad | Trinket | Alliterative |
| fancy-shmancy | Fancy my eye! | SH-Rule |
| fast track | Expedited service | Rhyming |
| fiddle-faddle | Nonsense | Alliterative |
| Fifi | French nickname | Duplicative |
| fishy-shmishy | Fishy my eye! | SH-Rule |
| flim-flam | Con game | Alliterative |
| flip-flop | Thong slippers, change of mind | Alliterative |
| flotsam-jetsam | Sea garbage | Alliterative |
| fribble-frabble | Nonsense | Alliterative |
| fuddy-duddy | Old-fashioned person | Rhyming |
| fuss budget | Fussy person | Complex |
| Gigi | French nickname | Duplicative |
| gogo | Fast paced (music) | Duplicative |
| goo-goo | Baby talk. | Duplicative |
| goody-goody | A smugly or affectedly virtuous person. | Duplicative |
| ha-ha | Normal laugh | Duplicative |
| handy-dandy | Quite useful | Rhyming |
| hanky-panky | Questionable activity | Rhyming |
| heebie-jeebies | Chills of fright | Rhyming |
| hee-haw | Mule sound | Alliterative |
| hee-hee | High-pitched laugh | Duplicative |
| he-he | Conniving laugh | Duplicative |
| helter-skelter | in all directions | Rhyming |
| hi-fi | High quality sound | Rhyming |
| higgledy-piggledy | Disorganized | Rhyming |
| hip-hop | Chanting music | Alliterative |
| hippety-hop | Hopping | Complex |
| hobnob | Hang around with | Rhyming |
| hocus-pocus | Trickery | Rhyming |
| ho-ho | Deep laugh | Duplicative |
| hoi-poloi | Ordinary people | Rhyming |
| hoity-toity | Showing off | Rhyming |
| hokey-pokey | Dance, ice cream | Rhyming |
| holus-bolus | All together | Rhyming |
| honky-tonk | Sleazy saloon | Rhyming |
| hootchy-kootchy | Erotic dance | Rhyming |
| hotshot | Important person | Rhyming |
| hubba-hubba | Disparaging salute to women | Duplicative |
| hubble-bubble | Noisy confusion of sounds | Rhyming |
| hubbly-bubbly | Hookah | Rhyming |
| hubbub | Noisy confusion of sounds | Rhyming |
| humdrum | Boringly routine. | Rhyming |
| Humpty-Dumpty | Nursery rhyme name (egg) | Rhyming |
| hunky-dory | OK, alright | Complex |
| hurdy-gurdy | Cranked musical instrument | Rhyming |
| hurly-burly | Tumult, bustle, confusion | Rhyming |
| itsy-bitsy | Very, very little | Rhyming |
| itty-bitty | Very, very little | Rhyming |
| jelly belly | Protruding stomach | Rhyming |
| jiggery-pokery | Trickery | Complex |
| jim-jams | Pajamas; the jitters (archaic) | Alliterative |
| jingle-jangle | Sound of metallic pieces | Alliterative |
| Ju-jubes | Commercial candy name | Rhyming |
| KitKat | Commercial candy name | Alliterative |
| kitty-cat | A cat | Alliterative |
| klip-klop | Sound of hooves | Alliterative |
| knick-knack | Trinket | Alliterative |
| legal beagle | Agressive lawyer | Rhyming |
| lickety-split | Fast | Complex |
| linsey-woolsey | Coarse wool fabric | Complex |
| litty-bitty | Very, very little | Rhyming |
| loosey-goosey | Very relaxed | Rhyming |
| lovey-dovey | Affectionate(ly) | Rhyming |
| Mimi | French nickname | Duplicative |
| moo-juice | Milk | Complex |
| mumbo-jumbo | Unintelligible speech | Rhyming |
| nightlight | Small electric light | Rhyming |
| nitty-gritty | The essence | Rhyming |
| nitwit | Dumb person | Rhyming |
| nolens-volens | Like it or not | Rhyming |
| okey-dokey | OK | Rhyming |
| oops-a-daisey | Exclamation for a fall or lifting | Complex |
| pall-mall | Old stick-and-ball game | Rhyming |
| palsy-walsy | Suspiciously friendly | Rhyming |
| peewee | Very small | Alliterative |
| pell-mell | In a rush | Rhyming |
| pish-posh! | Nonsense | Alliterative |
| Pit-Pat | TV show character | Alliterative |
| pitter-patter | Sound of little feet | Alliterative |
| pooh-pooh | Dismiss as trivial | Duplicative |
| pooper-scooper | Pet dropping scoop | Rhyming |
| prime time | TV programming 8 to 11 PM | Rhyming |
| raggle-taggle | Strangely mixed | Rhyming |
| ragtag | Ragged, disorganized | Rhyming |
| ratta-tat(-tat) | Drum roll, drum sound | Rhyming |
| razzle-dazzle | Showiness | Rhyming |
| razzmatazz | Dazzling display | Complex |
| riff-raff | Low life, worthless people | Alliterative |
| roly-poly | Round | Rhyming |
| *roister-doister | Loud-mouth, cut-up, show-off | Rhyming |
| *rooty-toot(-toot) | Sound of brass instrument | Rhyming |
| salary-shmalary | Salary my eye! | SH-Rule |
| Scooby-Doo | The name of a cartoon dog. | Rhyming |
| seesaw | A teeter-totter; to go back and forth | Alliterative |
| shilly-shally | Delay, lag behind | Rhyming |
| silly Willy | Casual nickname | Rhyming |
| sing-song | Boringly monotonic | Rhyming |
| slangwhang | Rant nonsense | Rhyming |
| slap-happy | Crazy happy; dizzy from beatings | Complex |
| slo-mo | Slow motion (movies) | Rhyming |
| Soho | Area of London | Rhyming |
| tee-hee | High pitched laugh | Rhyming |
| teeter-totter | Wobble; a see-saw | Alliterative |
| Tex-Mex | Texas-Mexican | Rhyming |
| tick-tock | Sound of an old clock | Alliterative |
| tipsy-topsy | Head over heels | Alliterative |
| tittle-tattle | Idle chatter | Alliterative |
| topsy-turvy | Confused | Complex |
| tutti-frutti | Italian ice cream flavor | Rhyming |
| twiddle-twaddle | Gab, superficial talk | Alliterative |
| Tweedledum & Tweedledee | Two things virtually identical | Alliterative |
| voodoo | Caribbean magic | Rhyming |
| walkie-talkie | Two-way hand-held portable radio. | Rhyming |
| wiggle-waggle | Waggling back and forth | Alliterative |
| whing-ding | Wild party | Rhyming |
| whirly-bird | Helicopter | Complex |
| wing-ding | Wild party | Rhyming |
| wi-fi | Wideband wireless network | Rhyming |
| willy-nilly | Like it or not; randomly | Rhyming |
| wishy-washy | Indecisive, vacillating | Alliterative |
| yadda-yadda-yadda | Etc., chatter, verbiage | Duplicative |
| yackety-yack | Droning chatter | Complex |
| zig-zag | Move back and forth | Alliterative |
Thank you to the following contributors: Lenore Taylor, . . . .
