| Term | Definition |
|---|
| meter | consistent pattern of alternating weak and strong beats (if pattern used throughout a poem, the verse is metrical) |
| foot | unit of metered line containing one strong beat and as many weak beats as the meter dictates |
| iamb (i-am) | foot consisting of a weak beat followed by a strong beat (ex: although) |
| trochee (troe-kee) | foot consisting of a strong beat followed by a weak beat (ex: purple) |
| dactyl | foot consisting of a strong beat followed by two weak beats (ex: anchovy; anapest) |
| anapest | foot consisting of two weak beats followed by a strong beat (ex: contradict) |
| spondee | double strong beat (ex: 'mome raths' in: "And the mome raths outgrabe") |
| iambic | (KoM) verse that uses iambs |
| trochaic | (KoM) verse that uses trochees |
| dactylic | (KoM) verse that uses dactyls |
| anapestic | (KoM) verse that uses anapests |
| pentameter | verse written in lines of five feet each {most famously, To be / or not / to be, / that is / the ques / tion. (This line is iambic with a stray weak beat at the end.)} |
| tetrameter | verse written in lines of four feet each (ex: "Terence, this is stupid stuff.") |
| regular | metrical verse in which the pattern, whether iambic, trochaic, dactylic, or anapestic, is not interrupted by extra weak beats or other "hiccups" (ex: most stanzas of "Jabberwocky") |
| irregular | verse that is metrical but full of extra weak beats or other disruptions of the pattern (ex: the bureau lies on the wall; so many a dangerous thing) |
| enjambment | the practice of continuing a thought over a line break (ex: He may have / been poor; We / die soon.) |
| end-stopping | the practice of finishing a thought and a line at the same time, often signaled by a comma or period (or semicolon) at the end of the line (ex: Terence, this is stupid stuff; / You eat your victuals fast enough...) |
Combine with other sets
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