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Barometric line

Structure
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 verse line that registers or responds to changes in emotional or atmospheric pressure

Detailed Definition
Barometric line measures or reflects atmospheric tension—emotional, political, or psychological—through shifts in diction, syntax, or imagery that mimic weather systems; it functions as a poetic barometer, signaling impending change, pressure, or storm through subtle tonal fluctuations.
Example
Example in poetry:
Barometric line: In Ted Hughes’ “The Thought-Fox,” the line “Till, with a sudden sharp hot stink of fox” acts as a barometric line—registering a sudden shift in imaginative pressure and intensity.
Additional Notes
Barometric line: A line that registers emotional or atmospheric "pressure" shifts through diction and sound; metaphorical term for lines that signal tonal change.
Also Known As
Pressure line atmospheric verse line barometric verse weather-pressure line
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