[ 'as(ə)nəns ]
■ noun the resemblance of sound between syllables in nearby words arising from the rhyming of stressed vowels (e.g. sonnet , porridge ), and also from the use of identical consonants with different vowels (e.g. killed , cold , culled ).
Derivatives
assonant adjective
assonate -neɪt verb
Origin
C18: from Fr., from L. assonare 'respond to'.