pattern of stresses and pauses in a poem

emphasis placed on a syllable in speech

recurrent, regular rhythmic pattern in verse

verse meter consisting of specific recurring number of iambic feet per line

unstressed syllable in a line of verse

meter that uses a consistent number of strong speech stresses per line

pause within a line of verse that traditionally appears near the middle of the line

line of verse that ends in a full pause, usually indicated by a mark of punctuation

line of verse that does not end in punctuation

study of metrical structures in poetry

practice used to describe rhythmic patterns in a poem by separating the metrical feet, counting the syllables, marking the accents and indicating the pauses

unit of measurement in metrical poetry

metrical foot in a verse which an unaccented syllable is followed by an accented one ( ? ? )

line made up primarily of anapests

metrical foot in verse in which two unstressed syllables are followed by a stressed syllable ( ? ? ? )

line made up primarily of trochees; often associated with songs, chants and magic spells in English

metrical foot in which a stressed syllable is followed by an unstressed syllable ( ? ? )

line made up primarily of dactyls; less common to English than it is to classical Greek or Latin

metrical foot of verse in which one stressed syllable is followed by two unstressed syllables ( ? ? ? )

meter whose movement rises from an unstressed syllable (or syllables) to a stressed syllable; iambic and anapestic meters are examples

meter whose movement falls from a stressed to unstressed syllable (or syllables); trochiac and dactylic meters are examples

foot, or unit of meter, that contains only one syllable

metrical foot of verse containing two stressed syllables ( ? ? ) often substituted into a meter to create extra emphasis

most common meter in English verse containing five iambic feet per line

verse meter consisting of one metrical foot, or one primary stress, per line

verse meter consisting of two metrical feet, or two primary stresses, per line

verse meter consisting of three metrical feet, or three primary stresses, per line

verse meter consisting of four metrical feet, or four primary stresses, per line

verse meter consisting of five metrical feet, or five primary stresses, per line

verse meter consisting of six metrical feet, or six primary stresses, per line

verse meter consisting of seven metrical feet, or seven stresses, per line

verse meter consisting of eight metrical feet, or eight primary stresses, per line