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Anceps

Meter
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A syllable position in classical meter that can be either long or short

Detailed Definition
Anceps (Latin for “two-headed”) denotes a metrical position in classical verse that can be filled by either a long or short syllable, offering flexibility within strict forms; in English prosody, it may describe a stress-ambiguous syllable accommodating rhythmic variation.
Example
Example in poetry:
Anceps: In classical prosody, an anceps is a metrical position that can be filled by either a long or short syllable; for example, in the iambic trimeter of Greek drama, the first syllable of each metron is often anceps, as in the line “τίς οὖν ἔτ᾽ ἐστὶν ὅστις ἀνθρώπων;” where the initial syllable “τίς” may be read as either long or short depending on performance.
Additional Notes
In classical prosody, a syllable position accepting either long or short quantity. Provides metrical flexibility. Most common in line-initial or line-final positions. Greek/Latin term relevant to quantitative verse analysis.
Also Known As
Variable position Metrically free syllable Flexible measure Either-length syllable
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