trochee

[ troh-kee ]

/ ˈtroʊ ki /

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noun Prosody.

a foot of two syllables, a long followed by a short in quantitative meter, or a stressed followed by an unstressed in accentual meter. Symbol: 

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of trochee

1580–90; <Latin trochaeus<Greek (poùs), trochaîos running (foot), equivalent to troch- (variant stem of tréchein to run) + -aios adj. suffix

Words nearby trochee

troch., trochaic, trochal, trochanter, troche, trochee, trochelminth, trochilus, trochlea, trochlear, trochlear nerve

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use trochee in a sentence

A Trochee is a two-syllable foot accented on the first syllable.
English: Composition and Literature|W. F. (William Franklin) Webster
Antispast, an′ti-spast, n. in metre, a foot composed of an iambus and a trochee.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D)|Various
It will be noted that the dactyl is very closely related in expression to the trochee, and the anapest to the iambic.
Browning and the Dramatic Monologue|S. S. Curry
The trochee seems in general to indicate an outpouring of emotion or sudden burst of feeling too strong for control.
Browning and the Dramatic Monologue|S. S. Curry

It would be impossible for him to talk in a steady, straight-forward iambic, or even in the hesitating, emotional trochee.
Browning and the Dramatic Monologue|S. S. Curry

British Dictionary definitions for trochee

trochee

/ (ˈtrəʊkiː) /

noun

prosody a metrical foot of two syllables, the first long and the second short (– ◡)Compare iamb

Word Origin for trochee

C16: via Latin from Greek trokhaios pous, literally: a running foot, from trekhein to run

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