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Standard Sonnets

The renown sonneteer Jose Rizal M. Reyes of the Philippines has suggested that there are three classes of sonnets, namely sonnets of the head, of the heart, and of the hand.

Sonnets of the hand, that those with some mechanistic feature or formulation that differentiates the sonnet by more than rhyme pattern, meter, line length of volta placement.


I have in this blog ,decided to refer to this class of sonnet, as "Gadget" sonnets, and leave the other sonnets classed a "standard" at this time.   I feel the distinction of sonnets by head and are are merely a matter of content and have nothing to do with sonnet form.

Here I will list those sonnets which most poet would consider standard, although their are some who will consider anything but English, French, and Italian to be otherwise.   Please weigh in if you find any here you think ought to be removed.

To jump to the specifications, poem example and template, click on sonnet name.   Please comment if you find any errors or omissions that need correction.
Standard Sonnets:
America Forte  abab bbcc cdcd dd
American Libre  abab bbcc cdcd ee
Arabian Sonnetaaaa bbbb ccc ddd
Asean Royal Flush Sonnetaaaaaaaa aaaaaa
Balanced Sonnet Stanzaic       Two septets  (7 line stanzas)
Meter:         Iambic pentameter
Volta          Not specified.
Rhyme Scheme:  ababcbc ededfef
Betwixt Sonnet  abba cbbc dbbd bb
Beymorlin Sonnetabab cdcd efef gg
Blank Verse Sonnet No rhyme; Strict Iambic Pentameter
Bowelsian Sonnet  abba cddc effe gg
Brisbane Sonnet abcabc defdef gg
abba acca ded ede
abbaabba cde cde
abbaacca dee dff, and others
abab bbcc cdcd dd
Chivalric Sonnet xaxa xbxb xcxc dd
Clare Sonnet aabbccddeeffgg
It consists of three quatrains and a couplet, but the couplet itself does not rhyme. 
The Rhyme scheme is:  abba cddc eefg gf
Couplet Sonnet aa bb cc dd ee ff gg
Cyhydedd Fer Sonnet aabbccddeeffgg
Divino Sonnet aabb dccd eff egg
Dorn Sonnet abcabc ee aeaeae or abcabc dd efefef
Dutch Sonnet ababaaccdxdfxf
abab cdcd efef gg
An otherwise normal sonnet with rhyme scheme
 abbacddc efgefg or abbacddc efefef.
abab bcbc cc cdcd
 French Canadian  Sonnet abba cddc ee fggf 
abba cddc eff egg
Flying Bird Sonnet aaaaa bbccbb aaaa
Four Epoch Sonnet abba cdcd efge hh 
Four Kings Sonnet abbaabba abbaab
Fourteener Alexandrine meter, any rhyme
French Sonnet abba abba ccdeed or abba abba ccdccdor abba abba ccdede
abbabccb cddcdd
Gloria cum Noynoy Sonnet - Italianic abba abba cddc dd
 aabbbccc ddedee
Grammarian Sonnet
Stanzaic , consisting of alternate quintains and couplets
Meter is iambic pentameter
Rhyme scheme: abbba cc deeed ff
ababab cdcdcd ee
abab abab abab ab
abbaabba cdecde or abbaabba cdccdc or abbaabba cdcdcd
abababab cdecde or abababab cdccdc or abababab cdcdcd
ababacca cdecde  or ababacca cdccdc  or ababacca cdcdcd
abab bcbc cdcd dd
aaaa bbbbbb aaaa
aabccb ddeffe ge
John Tee Sonnet ABcdefABghijAB
Kal's Wondercloth Weave Sonnet abcb bcdc cded de
Kangaroo Pause  abab ccdd efef gg
abc abd cab cde de 
abca bcab cabc dd
Kiwi Pauseabba ccdd effe gg or ababccdddedeff
 aaaaaaaa bbbbbbbb
La Germania
rhyming pattern: abba acca cddc dd
format: English (quatrain, quatrain, quatrain, couplet)
Decastich, No End Rhyme Allowed
 Lazy Day Sonnet Created by Rebecca Kerr:  Rhyme pattern aabbccdddeeeff
aaab bbcc cddd ee
Luzvimninda Sonnet aaaa bbbb cccc dd
abbaccaa ddaeea
Malayan Wave Sonnet -  English Format aaba bbcb ccdc dd
Marshalline Sonnet abab cdcd efef gg
Mason Sonnet abcabcbc dbadda
Melanesian Sonnet aabaaaba aababb
abbaabbacdecde
Two quatrains plus two tercets
Rhyme scheme: abba baab cdc dcd
Volta at or following line 9
Form created by Jose Risal M. Reyes in honor of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
 rhyming pattern: abba abba cddc dd
Philippine Sonnet  aaaa bbbb aaaa cc
Philippine Stanza Sonnet aaaa bbbb cccc dd
Invented and named by Jose Rizal M. Reyes of the Philippines.   Meter is iambic pentameter
Rhyme Scheme: aaxa bbxb ccxc dd
Pope John XXIII Sonnet aaaa bbbb cc dddd
abaccdd eff egg
Quatern Sonnet No rhyme Required, Any Permitted
abab cbc aa, abab cbc bb, abab cbc cc abab cac aa
abab cac bb, abab cac cc, abab cac aa
Four tercets plus a couplet
rhyme scheme aaa bbb ccc ddd ee
Invented by Ruth Poteet.
Romblomanon Sonnet aaaa bb cccc dddd
aabcc ddbee fggf
 aaba bbcb ccac aa
 Invented and named by Jose Rizal M. Reyes of the Philippines.  Meter is iambic pentameter
Rhyme Scheme: aba bccb ded effe
Salamander’s Fireburst Rhyme pattern is abcb acdc aded ae, where the c and d rhymes must be feminine.
abab cdcd efef gg
aaa abab aaa abab, aaa abab aaa abcb
axa abab axa abab, axa abab axa abcb
aaa abcb aaa abab, aaa abcb aaa abcb
axa abcb axa abab, axa abcb axa abcb
aaa bbcc aaa bbcc or aza bbcc aza bbcc (where "z" lines must  rhyme with each other, but can have any value, inclueding a-c.)
Saraband Sonnet - Italian Style aaa baab aaa baab or axa baab axa baab
Saraband Sonnet - Spanish Style aaa bcbc aaa bcbc or axa bcbc axa bcbc
Scupham Sonnet
Two  Scupham stanzas (sextets) followed by a couplet
Metered: Iambic Pentamter
Rhymed: abccba deffed gg
abababab cdccdc  or abababab cdecde

Sonnet Rounds, Crowns, and Sonnet RedoublĂ©Here Lies this poet's proudest work.
And just added, the best composition I've ever read.
SononillaIt is defined by the Rhyme Scheme: abbaabbaccddcc
South African QuiltIt is defined by the Rhyme scheme: aabb ccdd efg efg
abab bcbc cdcd ee
 aba bccdbbde efe 
abcc deff ghii jj
Rhyme Pattern: 
abab  cdcd  effe  fe
Tuckerman’s Sonnet

abbabcab adeced  or abbabcba bdeced
Vaughanet
abab cc dede fgfg
Visser Sonnet


abab cc dede fgfg
Created by Tim Weaver, aka Poeticweaver on Allpoety
Rhyme pattern: aabb cdcd efef gg
Volta/Meter/Line length optional
Empty Cell
Empty Cell
Wordsworth Sonnet
abbaacca dede ff.
Wyatt/Surrey
abbaabba cddc ee
Empty Cell Empty Cell

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