Question

read the poem.
skimming the bottom
in the company of toes,
i observe the deep end
though nobody knows.

in the depths, i am bold,
on the surface—shy.
my goggles transform me:
an underwater spy.

what is the poems rhyme scheme?
○ aabb
○ abab
○ abcb
○ abcd

Explanation:

To determine the rhyme scheme, we analyze the end - words of each line:

• Line 1: "bottom" (let's assign 'a')
• Line 2: "toes" (rhymes with "bottom"? No. Let's assign 'b')
• Line 3: "I" (doesn't rhyme with 'a' or 'b', assign 'c'? Wait, no, wait. Wait, line 3: "I" (wait, no, line 3 is "I observe the deep end" – end word "end"? Wait, maybe I misread. Let's re - check:

Line 1: "bottom" (a)
Line 2: "toes" (b)
Line 3: "end" – does it rhyme with "bottom"? No. With "toes"? No. So new letter? Wait, no, line 4: "knows" – does "end" rhyme with "knows"? No. Wait, maybe I made a mistake. Wait, the poem:

Line 1: Skimming the bottom (bottom - a)
Line 2: In the company of toes, (toes - b)
Line 3: I observe the deep end (end - c)
Line 4: Though nobody knows. (knows - b? Wait, "toes" and "knows" rhyme? "Toes" is /təʊz/, "knows" is /nəʊz/ – yes, they rhyme. So line 2: b, line 4: b.

Line 5: In the depths, I am bold, (bold - d)
Line 6: On the surface—shy, (shy - e)
Line 7: My goggles transform me; (me - f)
Line 8: An underwater spy. (spy - e? "Shy" and "spy" rhyme? "Shy" is /ʃaɪ/, "spy" is /spaɪ/ – yes, they rhyme. So line 6: e, line 8: e. Wait, no, the options are aabb, abab, abcb, abcd. Wait, maybe the first four lines:

Line 1: bottom (a)
Line 2: toes (b)
Line 3: end (c)
Line 4: knows (b) – so rhyme scheme for first four lines: abcb. Let's check the options. The option abcb is there. Let's confirm:

Line 1: a (bottom)
Line 2: b (toes)
Line 3: c (end)
Line 4: b (knows) – yes, that's abcb. Then the next lines: line 5: bold (d), line 6: shy (e), line 7: me (f), line 8: spy (e) – but the question is about the poem's rhyme scheme, probably focusing on the first four or the overall? Wait, the options are aabb, abab, abcb, abcd. Let's check the first four lines:

Line 1: bottom (a)
Line 2: toes (b)
Line 3: end (c)
Line 4: knows (b) – so abcb.

Answer:

C. abcb