349:
and a thesis, that is, a place where the foot was raised ("arsis") and where it was put down ("thesis") in beating time or in marching or dancing. The Greeks recognised three basic types of feet, the iambic (where the ratio of arsis to thesis was 1:2), the dactylic (where it was 2:2) and the paeonic
406:
The following lists describe the feet in terms of vowel length (as in classical languages). Translated into syllable stresses (as in
English poetry), "long" becomes "stressed" ("
345:, which in turn is a translation of the Ancient Greek πούς, pl. πόδες. The Ancient Greek prosodists, who invented this terminology, specified that a foot must have both an
250:
1293:
1542:
391:
Below listed are the names given to the poetic feet by classical metrics. The feet are classified first by the number of syllables in the foot (
1753:
1180:
403:
four) and secondarily by the pattern of vowel lengths (in classical languages) or syllable stresses (in
English poetry) which they comprise.
243:
1238:
236:
1286:
1929:
1535:
1746:
1473:
1279:
280:
79:
276:
2006:
2001:
1528:
94:
1739:
1465:
40:
414:, which is short-long in classical meter, becomes unstressed-stressed, as in the English word "alone".
1489:
1404:
1359:
291:
99:
1916:
1660:
1636:
423:
375:
The foot is a purely metrical unit; there is no inherent relation to a word or phrase as a unit of
302:, and is usually two, three, or four syllables in length. The most common feet in English are the
1947:
1921:
1665:
1648:
1432:
1422:
1341:
1321:
284:
204:
174:
129:
89:
59:
1828:
1631:
1626:
1266:
1234:
1176:
698:
542:
1705:
1412:
346:
331:
219:
199:
154:
1878:
1710:
1643:
1455:
1417:
1331:
1151:
1146:
764:
564:
407:
369:
365:
358:
311:
209:
189:
184:
104:
84:
69:
64:
214:
1977:
1942:
1838:
1559:
1551:
1379:
1257:
268:
159:
134:
1995:
1964:
1783:
1778:
1695:
1677:
1621:
1504:
1479:
1384:
1227:
139:
54:
49:
1685:
383:, though the interplay between these is an aspect of the poet's skill and artistry.
1969:
1911:
1901:
1793:
1450:
1354:
1349:
676:
323:
295:
149:
114:
74:
1700:
353:
Lines of verse are classified according to the number of feet they contain, e.g.
1833:
1762:
1690:
1484:
1394:
1389:
1197:
871:
471:
411:
327:
319:
303:
144:
1883:
1873:
1858:
1818:
1597:
1587:
1582:
1445:
586:
354:
31:
357:. However some lines of verse are not considered to be made up of feet, e.g.
17:
1959:
1954:
1906:
1602:
1592:
1567:
1374:
1308:
376:
224:
169:
1262:
1934:
1823:
1803:
1798:
1720:
1577:
1499:
1440:
1364:
1316:
974:
631:
608:
315:
299:
288:
164:
124:
119:
109:
1868:
1843:
1808:
1655:
1572:
511:
489:
454:
307:
1863:
1853:
1848:
1813:
1788:
1770:
1494:
1369:
653:
493:
410:"), and "short" becomes "unstressed" ("unaccented"). For example, an
380:
272:
194:
1893:
1715:
1509:
1271:
30:"Pedes" redirects here. For the ancient Roman unit of length, see
1520:
1735:
1731:
1524:
1275:
1258:
Comprehensive list of feet and colas up to 12 syllables long
337:
The
English word "foot" is a translation of the Latin term
368:, two feet are combined into a larger unit called a
1892:
1769:
1676:
1611:
1558:
1464:
1431:
1403:
1340:
1307:
1226:
27:Basic repeating rhythmic unit in a line of poetry
1747:
1536:
1287:
244:
8:
1229:The Oxford Companion to Classical Literature
1754:
1740:
1732:
1543:
1529:
1521:
1294:
1280:
1272:
364:In some kinds of metre, such as the Greek
251:
237:
36:
710:
523:
440:
1173:The Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms
1163:
39:
1233:. New York: Oxford University Press.
1175:. New York: Oxford University Press.
7:
318:. The foot might be compared to a
277:Indo-European traditions of poetry
25:
1213:Aristoxenes: Elementa Rhythmica
1:
1225:Howatson, M. C., ed. (1976).
271:that forms part of a line of
1930:Perfect and imperfect rhymes
438:= unstressed/short syllable
734:tetrabrach, proceleusmatic
2023:
298:. The unit is composed of
29:
1109:
1005:
899:minor ionic, double iamb
845:
738:
432:= stressed/long syllable
281:accentual-syllabic verse
80:Latin rhythmic hexameter
1211:Pearson, Lionel (1990)
1195:Pearson, Lionel (1990)
1171:Baldick, Chris (2008).
372:(pl. metra) or dipody.
267:is the basic repeating
474:(or iambus or jambus)
95:Metres of Roman comedy
1215:(Oxford), pp. 25, 27.
41:Greek and Latin metre
1200:: Elementa Rhythmica
350:(where it was 3:2).
279:, including English
100:Trochaic septenarius
1661:Trochaic tetrameter
1948:Off-centered rhyme
1666:Trochaic octameter
1649:Dactylic hexameter
285:quantitative meter
205:Resolution (meter)
175:Anaclasis (poetry)
130:Asclepiad (poetry)
90:Saturnian (poetry)
60:Dactylic hexameter
1989:
1988:
1729:
1728:
1637:Iambic heptameter
1632:Iambic pentameter
1627:Iambic tetrameter
1518:
1517:
1182:978-0-19-923891-0
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1137:
874:, double trochee
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703:
517:
516:
261:
260:
16:(Redirected from
2014:
1756:
1749:
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1733:
1656:Trochee/Trochaic
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1413:Secondary stress
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1267:H.T. Kirby-Smith
1263:Prosody Tutorial
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1216:
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1203:
1202:(Oxford), p. 29.
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1105:fourth epitrite
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424:Macron and breve
332:musical notation
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220:Arsis and thesis
200:Biceps (prosody)
155:Galliambic verse
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21:
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1332:Vowel reduction
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387:Classical meter
366:iambic trimeter
359:hendecasyllable
257:
210:Brevis brevians
190:Brevis in longo
185:Metron (poetry)
105:Hendecasyllable
85:Iambic trimeter
70:Alcmanian verse
65:Elegiac couplet
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160:Sotadean metre
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135:Sapphic stanza
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9:
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2019:
2008:
2007:Metrical feet
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2002:Poetic rhythm
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1505:Prosodic unit
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496:(or choreus)
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326:divided into
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292:ancient Greek
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269:rhythmic unit
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180:Metrical foot
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140:Alcaic stanza
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55:Latin prosody
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51:
50:Greek prosody
48:
47:
46:
45:
42:
38:
33:
19:
18:Metrical feet
1970:Rhyme scheme
1912:Broken rhyme
1902:Alliteration
1794:Burns stanza
1763:Poetic forms
1613:
1451:Vowel length
1355:Pitch accent
1350:Tone contour
1326:
1228:
1220:
1212:
1207:
1196:
1191:
1172:
1166:
677:antibacchius
520:Trisyllables
422:
421:
405:
400:
397:trisyllables
396:
392:
390:
374:
363:
352:
342:
338:
336:
328:pulse groups
296:Latin poetry
264:
262:
215:Porson's Law
179:
150:Anacreontics
115:Aeolic verse
75:Archilochian
1922:Cross rhyme
1834:Rhyme royal
1485:Pitch reset
1395:Tone letter
1390:Tone sandhi
1198:Aristoxenes
418:Disyllables
399:three, and
393:disyllables
145:Ionic metre
1996:Categories
1917:Consonance
1884:Villanelle
1874:Terza rima
1859:Tail rhyme
1819:Quatorzain
1612:Meters by
1598:Heptameter
1588:Pentameter
1583:Tetrameter
1474:Intonation
1446:Gemination
1158:References
1134:dispondee
1001:antispast
924:ditrochee
587:amphibrach
426:notation:
395:have two,
355:pentameter
32:Pes (unit)
1974:Semirhyme
1960:Pararhyme
1955:Monorhyme
1907:Assonance
1701:Mutaqārib
1603:Octameter
1593:Hexameter
1568:Monometer
1375:Downdrift
341:, plural
300:syllables
289:classical
225:Catalexis
170:Lekythion
1978:Syllabic
1935:Holorime
1829:Quintain
1824:Quatrain
1804:Cinquain
1799:Chaubola
1578:Trimeter
1500:Loudness
1441:Chroneme
1365:Downstep
1360:Register
1317:Syllable
1141:See also
975:choriamb
699:molossus
632:bacchius
609:anapaest
543:tribrach
408:accented
316:anapaest
283:and the
275:in most
165:Dochmiac
125:Glyconic
120:Choriamb
110:Choliamb
1869:Triolet
1844:Sestain
1809:Couplet
1771:Stanzas
1573:Dimeter
1476:(pitch)
1466:Prosody
949:diiamb
763:primus
512:spondee
490:trochee
377:meaning
322:, or a
308:trochee
1894:Rhymes
1864:Tercet
1854:Sonnet
1849:Sestet
1814:Ghazal
1789:Biolet
1644:Dactyl
1495:Rhythm
1490:Stress
1433:Length
1423:Accent
1405:Stress
1370:Upstep
1309:Timing
1237:
1179:
870:major
654:cretic
565:dactyl
494:choree
381:syntax
370:metron
314:, and
312:dactyl
195:Anceps
1721:Wāfir
1716:Tawīl
1711:Rajaz
1706:Madīd
1696:Kāmil
1691:Hazaj
1686:Basīṭ
1560:Meter
1510:Pausa
872:ionic
765:paeon
347:arsis
343:pedes
330:, in
273:verse
1622:Iamb
1342:Tone
1322:Mora
1235:ISBN
1177:ISBN
472:iamb
412:iamb
324:beat
304:iamb
294:and
265:foot
263:The
1265:by
379:or
339:pes
320:bar
287:of
1998::
492:,
434:,
361:.
334:.
310:,
306:,
1755:e
1748:t
1741:v
1544:e
1537:t
1530:v
1295:e
1288:t
1281:v
1243:.
1185:.
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1101:◡
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436:◡
430:–
252:e
245:t
238:v
34:.
20:)
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