Adonic

American

[uh-don-ik] / əˈdɒn ɪk /

adjective

Prosody. noting a verse consisting of a dactyl () followed by a spondee () or trochee ().
of or like Adonis.

noun

Prosody. an Adonic verse or line.

Adonic British

/ əˈdəʊnɪk /

adjective

(in classical prosody) of or relating to a verse line consisting of a dactyl (¯˘˘) followed by a spondee (––) or by a trochee (¯˘), thought to have been first used in laments for Adonis
of or relating to Adonis

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

an Adonic line or verse

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of Adonic

From the Medieval Latin word Adōnicus, dating back to 1670–80. See Adonis, -ic

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Of these the four-syllable type seems to me the one to be preferred, as giving the effect of the Adonic better than if it had been two syllables longer.

From Project Gutenberg

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023