Sometimes we find four feminine rhymes occurring in an unbroken succession, as in ll. 1263–66. But it must be noticed that the number of masculine rhymes is predominant. Thus the stanzas beginning with ll. 3047, 3063, 3123, 1123, 791, 1035, 1271, 1275, 2019, 1311, 1351, 1463, &c., contain only masculine rhyme-endings.
The rhymes are not always full and true; there occur many imperfect ones.
(1) A word in the singular number is often rhymed with a word in the plural number, which therefore has an additional s (or es):—797, thinge : tidyngys; 2647, fyght : knyghtes; 2087, light : knightes; 1455, cosynes : kinge; 2272, laye : dayes; 2395, 885, Ogere : peres; 2456, alle : walles; 2682, nede : stedes; 944, mone : stoones; cf. also 2376, wile : beguiled. In l. 68, poundis : dromonde; the rhyme becomes perfect in reading pounde, as in l. 2336, instead of poundis.
(2) Single n is found rhyming with n- combinations.
α. n : nd—cf. 814, ychoon : Mahounde; 912, pavilone : Mahounde; 1201, crowne : Mahounde. The rhyme, 162, Rome : houne, may be explained in the same manner, for houne stands for hounde, as it is spelt in ll. 237, 2377, 935, 1756.[77]
β. n : ng—cf. 2349, Mapyne : endinge; 86, Apolyne : tithinge; 370, inne : kinge; 1455, cosynes : kinge; 3249, Genelyne : kinge; 3171, serpentyne : endinge; 959, distruccion : wronge. [‹xliii›]
In 614, love : vowe, the second rhyme vowe does not contain the consonant v.
(3) Rhymes imperfect as concerns the consonants.
m : n—cf. 76, Rome : one; 1672, 364 : done; 2443, 366, come : done; 747, some : soudone; 1323, came : than; 1488, came : ranne; 2128, tyme : pyne; 177, him : wynne; 2375, him : tene; 447, 859, him : kyn; 2004, hyme : skyne; 2353, him : inne.
f : v—cf. 341, twelve : selve; 415, wife : alive; 1762, gyfene : lyvene; 1912, gife : lyve. But in all these cases the rhymes are really perfect, they seem only imperfect in consequence of the copyist writing indiscriminately f and v. Thus the rhyme of l. 341 reappears in l. 1867, self : twelf. In l. 2336 we find gefe, which is written geve in l. 198; lefe, l. 764; safe, l. 864, are spelt with v in ll. 1340, 1529, 2808.