In Spenserian sonnets, what is the pattern described?

• A. The last rhyme of one quatrain is repeated as the first rhyme of the next
• B. Each line rhymes with the next
• C. There is no rhyme in Spenserian
• D. The couplet rhymes with the next quatrain

Answer: (A)

Interlocking rhyme across quatrains defines a Spenserian sonnet. In this form, the last rhyme of one quatrain is repeated as the first rhyme of the next, creating a chained progression like ABAB, BCBC, CDCD, and ending with EE for the couplet. This means the quatrains are linked together through shared rhymes, giving the poem a continuous flow from start to finish. That description is exactly what the statement conveys. The other ideas—rhyme happening line by line, having no rhyme, or the couplet rhyming with the next quatrain—don’t capture this linked, interlocking structure.