Final answer:
Free verse is a form of poetry without consistent meter or rhyme schemes, rather mirroring casual speech and allowing poets the freedom for more natural expression. It can sporadically use rhyme or meter for emphasis but relies more on thematic coherence and syntactic patterns for structure.
Step-by-step explanation:
The best description of free verse is poetry that does not have consistent patterns of meter or rhyme schemes. Unlike traditional poetry, which tends to use repeating structures such as line lengths and rhyming patterns to create a unified feel, free verse allows poets to write with more flexibility. Nonetheless, free verse can still employ metrical and rhyming elements sporadically to connect lines or for emphasis, but these are not used consistently to structure the entire poem.
Free verse is notable for its openness which mirrors ordinary speech and evokes feeling through the use of varied literary devices such as imagery or repetition of grammatical structures. Therefore, it's essential to note that while free verse lacks a strict metrical pattern or rhyme, it still relies on other forms of organization such as thematic coherence, syntactic patterns, and occasionally, internal rhyme to maintain a sense of structure.
Poets like Walt Whitman have popularized free verse, and many modern poets prefer this format, as it offers a more conversational tone and the freedom to express ideas without the constraints of traditional verse forms.