Oxford Rhyming Dictionary

This is the one to get. Don't bother with cheaper ones. It's a reference book that doesn't mind being well thumbed. If only the other publishers realised that reference books have to be a sturdy piece of kit. This will be a constant companion for many years. Penguin lasted a year. Chambers lasted a few weeks.

While the book is very comprehensive its very comprehensiveness
counts against convenient use. If you're an amateur poet, you'd
do better with the Penguin or the Chambers. A rhyming dictionary
can only be suggestive - who wants ALL the possible rhymes for
a given word?

This book is a wonder and seems to be the most comprehensive of its type on the market.

It's enduring attraction is that it promotes so many different contexts for rhyme - not just academic poetry but in jokes, song lyrics, photo-captions, speeches etc - that you may not be initially aware of. Unexpectedly for me it's a great "dip in" book.

As with all reference books this needs to be (and is) a sturdy hardback. How many others are?

Ultimately it's main worth for me is it's organisation. It's arranged by a large index at the back which is a list of alphabetical subjects, their exact rhymes are numerically systematised in the front section into groups of exact rhymes. Usefully this includes proper nouns (eg Robert di Niro = hero)and even more practically, each category is organised ALONGSIDE groups of near-rhymes giving you greater access to the comedic side of rhyming.

And that's just it - with such a large wordbank this is an unpredictably funny source of reference. One which is bound to increase in usuage once the lay-out is mastered.

You too can rhyme Somerset with Exocet!