dactyl

¹ American  

[dak-til] / ˈdæk tɪl /

noun

1. Prosody. a foot of three syllables, one long followed by two short in quantitative meter, or one stressed followed by two unstressed in accentual meter, as in gently and humanly.

2. a finger or toe.

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Dactyl ² American  

[dak-til] / ˈdæk tɪl /

Or Daktyl

noun

Classical Mythology.

plural

Dactyls, Dactyli

1. any of a number of beings dwelling on Mount Ida and working as metalworkers and magicians.

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-dactyl ³ American  

1. variant of -dactylous, especially with nouns.

   pterodactyl.

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dactyl British  

/ ˈdæktɪl /

noun

1. Also called: dactylic.  prosody a metrical foot of three syllables, one long followed by two short ( ) Compare bacchius

2. zoology any digit of a vertebrate

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Usage

What does -dactyl mean? The combining form -dactyl is used like a suffix with two related meanings. Depending on the context, it can mean "fingered, possessing fingers" or "toed, possessing toes." Essentially, -dactyl means "having digits." It is occasionally used in scientific terms, especially in anatomy and zoology.The form -dactyl comes from Greek dáktylos, meaning “finger” or “toe.” In poetry, the metrical foot known as a dactyl also derives from this same Greek root. Learn more at our entry for dactyl.What are variants of -dactyl?The form -dactyl is a variant of -dactylous, as in tetradactylous.While not a variant of -dactyl, -dactyly is also related to this form. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use article for these combining forms.

Etymology

Origin of dactyl¹

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin dactylus < Greek dáktylos finger, a dactyl, referring to the three joints of the finger

Origin of Dactyl²

< Greek Dáktyloi ( Idaîoi ) (Idaean) craftsmen or wizards (plural of dáktylos; dactyl )

Example Sentences

They aren’t exactly Homeric dactyls, but they seem intended to mirror that ancient literary form, and they give “Everyday Life” an easily digestible if slightly pretentious rhythm.

From Washington Post

And this dactyl—this strange and beautiful creature with its wrinkled, gray-brown hide, barrel chest, and slender neck—she wanted to hug it.

From Literature

Without the translation, the vuvv’s ode, its scratchy iambs and dactyls, sound like someone walking forcefully in corduroys.

From Literature

A single stressed syllable, then a trochee, then a dactyl, for prosody nerds.

From Literature

The double dactyl is a form invented by writers Anthony Hecht and Paul Pascal on a whim over lunch in Rome in 1951.

From Washington Post