dactyl
Stressed-unstressed-unstressed pattern
A dactyl is a metrical foot in poetry consisting of one stressed syllable followed by two unstressed syllables—the rhythm of words like "merrily" or "beautiful." The term comes from the Greek word for finger, which has one long joint followed by two shorter ones.
Dactylic meter gives verse a rolling, galloping quality: Sing, O goddess, the anger of Achilles.
Bones of fingers, toes
- digitSingle numeric character
- fingerHand's grasping extension
- toeFoot's small digit
- thumbShort opposable digit
index · middle · ring · pinky · knuckle · nail · fingertip · joint
Overwhelmed by pressure
- unstressedWithout rhythmic emphasis
- syllableUnit of pronunciation
- longOf great extent
- shortOf limited extent
metrical · foot · scansion · prosody · hexameter · pentameter · spondee · trochee
Metered poetic passage
- epicImpressively grand in scope
- IliadAncient Greek war epic
- OdysseyEpic of homecoming
- AeneidRoman founding epic
classical · Greek · Latin · hexameter · Homeric · oral · recitation · mnemonic
Extinct Mesozoic reptile
- JurassicDinosaur-dominated geological period
- CretaceousFinal Mesozoic period
- MesozoicAge of Reptiles
- paleontologyStudy of ancient organisms
fossil · winged · reptile · prehistoric · excavation · skeleton · claw · extinct
phalanges
Bones of fingers, toes
thumb · index · middle · ring · pinky · knuckle · nail · fingertip · joint · metacarpal
stressed
Overwhelmed by pressure
- unstressedWithout rhythmic emphasis
- syllableUnit of pronunciation
- longOf great extent
short · metrical · foot · scansion · prosody · hexameter · pentameter · spondee · trochee · anapest
verse
Metered poetic passage
Aeneid · classical · Greek · Latin · hexameter · Homeric · oral · recitation · mnemonic · formulaic
dinosaur
Extinct Mesozoic reptile
- JurassicDinosaur-dominated geological period
- CretaceousFinal Mesozoic period
- MesozoicAge of Reptiles
paleontology · fossil · winged · reptile · prehistoric · excavation · skeleton · claw · extinct · specimen
- poetry termspoetry, rhyme, verse, rhythm, meter
- arthropod partsleg, legs, antennae, claws, claw
- poetic devicesalliteration, assonance, consonance, rhyme, simile
- poeticsrhyme, versification, poetic form, stanza, meter
- rhythm termsrhythm, beat, tempo, meter, cadence
- classical prosodyspondee, trochee, iamb, anapest, hexameter