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Bacchic trimeter line

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 line formed by three Bacchiac feet, also called Bacchic trimeter

Detailed Definition
A Bacchic trimeter line contains three bacchic feet (´ ˘ ˘), resulting in a nine-syllable structure with a distinctive lilt; though uncommon in English prosody, it offers poets a vehicle for rhythmic innovation, particularly in lyric or incantatory contexts where regular meter would feel constraining.
Example
Example in poetry:
A bacchiac foot is usually scanned ⏑ – –, as in an unstressed syllable followed by two strong beats; A schematic bacchiac trimeter contains three such units, ⏑ – – | ⏑ – – | ⏑ – –; “in DARK NIGHT / the WILD STORM / will NOT CEASE” approximates the rising-then-heavy pulse in English stress verse; Greek tragedy employs bacchiacs in passages associated with movement, excitement, or ritual song; English examples are often approximate because classical bacchiac meter depends on syllable quantity, not merely stress
Additional Notes
Bacchic trimeter line is a line of verse made up of three Bacchius feet; a specific type of Bacchic three-measure used in classical poetry.
Also Known As
Bacchiac three-foot Dionysian trimeter Bacchiac triplet line Bacchiac trimeter
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