iambic pentameter

Cultural  

1. The most common meter in English verse. It consists of a line ten syllables long that is accented on every second beat (see blank verse). These lines in iambic pentameter are from The Merchant of Venice, by William Shakespeare:

   ĭn sóoth,/ĭ knów/nŏt whý/ĭ ám/sŏ sád.

   ĭt wéa/riĕs mé;/yŏu sáy/ĭt wéa/riĕs yóu….

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Example Sentences

Other decisions are matters of policy: Should a translator preserve Shakespeare’s iambic pentameter?

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 22, 2026

At the same time, there is a sort of Shakespearean lilt to much of of it; many lines, in my random examination, resolve into iambic pentameter.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 5, 2025

"This is the biggest mountain because I was always worried about the iambic pentameter, about blank verse, and not being trained as an actor," he says.

From BBC • Jun. 7, 2024

But LLMs have also managed to ace the bar exam, explain the Higgs boson in iambic pentameter, and make an attempt to break up their users’ marriage.

From Scientific American • May 11, 2023

North of Copenhagen is the city of Elsinore, home to the castle where Hamlet takes place, with its wandering ghosts, ill-advised eavesdropping behind the drapes, conversations with skulls, and deadly duels in iambic pentameter.

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood