tetrameter
Americannoun
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Prosody. a verse of four feet.
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Classical Prosody. a line consisting of four dipodies in trochaic, iambic, or anapestic meter.
adjective
noun
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a line of verse consisting of four metrical feet
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a verse composed of such lines
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(in classical prosody) a line of verse composed of four dipodies
Etymology
Origin of tetrameter
1605–15; < Latin tetrametrus < Greek tetrámetros having four measures. See tetra-, meter 2
Explanation
When a poem uses tetrameter, it includes lines of four metrical feet, or four stressed syllables. Many well-known poets and songwriters use tetrameter. You may have heard the poem "Trees" by Joyce Kilmer — it's the one that goes "I think that I shall never see/A poem lovely as a tree." If that sounds familiar, then you already know what tetrameter sounds like. It's one of the most common ways to structure verse. From Emily Dickinson ("Because I could not stop for death/It kindly stopped for me") to the Beatles ("Picture yourself on a boat in a river"), you can find tetrameter almost anywhere!
Vocabulary lists containing tetrameter
Poetry: Structure and Meter
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Reading: Literature - Poetry - High School
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Craft and Structure (Unit 3)
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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.
This being so, Leithauser’s chapters cover such seemingly ho-hum subjects as iambic pentameter, iambic tetrameter, the stanza, enjambment, rhyming and wordplay.
From Washington Post • Apr. 27, 2022
I wanted people to understand that she could write in perfect iambic tetrameter.
From Slate • Jan. 11, 2021
Anapestic tetrameter is a much cheerier form of verse than its name suggests.
From New York Times • Jul. 24, 2013
It begins in boldly impressionistic, even imagistic, style, as the salient features of the scene are listed in lines of lightly-flowing tetrameter.
From The Guardian • Apr. 22, 2013
“Well done! You are natural-born poets, each and every one of you. Of course, iambic pentameter should not be confused with anapestic tetrameter, as I am sure you already know. Would anyone care to demonstrate?”
From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
