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Bacchic substitution

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

The substitution of a bacchius (u – –) for another foot in a metrical line, often to vary rhythm or emphasize a phrase in classical verse.

Detailed Definition
Bacchic substitution replaces a standard metrical foot with a bacchius (stressed-unstressed-unstressed) to inject rhythmic surprise or mimetic energy; though rare in English, it can evoke stumbling, laughter, or ritual dance, disrupting iambic predictability for dramatic or comic effect.
Example
Example in poetry:
Bacchic substitution: In Swinburne’s “Atalanta in Calydon,” a bacchic foot (stressed-unstressed-unstressed) occasionally substitutes for iambic meter, as in “WINDS of the WORLD,” injecting wild energy.
Additional Notes
Bacchic substitution replaces a standard foot with a bacchic (stressed-unstressed-unstressed) to disrupt meter for dramatic effect; rare but potent in accentual verse.
Also Known As
Bacchic replacement Bacchiac variation Bacchic foot substitution metrical Bacchic change
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