tetrameter

American  

[te-tram-i-ter] / tɛˈtræm ɪ tər /

noun

1. Prosody. a verse of four feet.

2. Classical Prosody. a line consisting of four dipodies in trochaic, iambic, or anapestic meter.

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adjective

1. Prosody. consisting of four metrical feet.

tetrameter British  

/ tɛˈtræmɪtə /

noun

1. a line of verse consisting of four metrical feet

2. a verse composed of such lines

3. (in classical prosody) a line of verse composed of four dipodies

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Etymology

Origin of tetrameter

1605–15; < Latin tetrametrus < Greek tetrámetros having four measures. See tetra-, meter ²

Example Sentences

“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 Literature

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

There were monkeypods, “planted as seedlings no taller than chives,” as Mr. Merwin wrote, in impeccable dactylic tetrameter, in an essay in “What Is a Garden?,” which centers on his work in Hawaii.

From New York Times

This is a variant on ballad measure, which is to say the stanza rhymes abcb and alternates tetrameter and trimeter phrasings.

From New York Times

In turgid anapestic tetrameter, the poem lauds Trump as “a leader whose courage is true / Whose virtues are solid and long overdue.”

From The New Yorker