bacchius

[ buh-kahy-uh s, ba- ]

/ bəˈkaɪ əs, bæ- /

noun, plural bac·chi·i [buh-kahy-ahy ba-] /bəˈkaɪ aɪ bæ-/. Prosody.

a foot of three syllables that in quantitative meter consists of one short syllable followed by two long ones, and that in accentual meter consists of one unstressed syllable followed by two stressed ones.

Nearby words

bacchanalian, bacchant, bacchante, bacchantes, bacchic, bacchius, bacchus, bacchylides, bacci-, bacciferous, bacciform

Compare antibacchius.

Origin of bacchius

1580–90; < Latin < Greek Bakkheîos (poús) (foot) of Bacchus

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for bacchius

He scans it as a 'bacchius', consisting of four feet, with the measurement , the last syllable of saeclo seeming to be shortened.
Cato Maior de Senectute|Marcus Tullius Cicero

British Dictionary definitions for bacchius

bacchius

/ (bæˈkaɪəs) /

noun plural -chii (-ˈkaɪaɪ)

prosody a metrical foot of one short syllable followed by two long ones (◡ – –)Compare dactyl

Word Origin for bacchius

C16: from Latin, from Greek Bakkheios (pous) a Bacchic (foot)

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