Imperfect rhymes, also known as half-rhymes, near-rhymes, lazy rhymes, or slant rhymes, connect words by using similar (but not identical) sounds and emphases. Imperfect rhymes satisfy some but not all of the criteria for perfect rhymes. They are used to great effect in poetry to increase the poem's rhythm and tension. An example of an imperfect rhyme is found in this line from "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" by Samuel Taylor Coleridge: "Albatross! When the wind blows north-east/ Across the sea." Here the author uses two words that begin with the same letter to create a rhyme scheme that fits perfectly with the meter he has chosen. However, since the words don't exactly end in a consonant sound they aren't considered perfect rhymes. Half-rhymes can be either masculine or feminine, depending on which word serves as the guide for the rhymer. If the first word ends in a vowel sound, as in the example above, then it is a half-rhyme. If the last word ends in a consonant, as in black and white, then it is a full-rhyme. Half-rhymes are useful in poems where you want to create a balance between words that fit the definition completely and words that don't fit it quite so well.