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Chiastic couplet

Form
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 two-line stanza in which the second line reverses or echoes the structure or keywords of the first in chiastic form.

Detailed Definition
A chiastic couplet is a two-line stanza structured around chiasmus, where the second line inverts the word order, syntax, or idea of the first to create balance and insight; this compact form distills complex thought into symmetrical phrasing, as in epigrams that use reversal to expose irony or moral truth through formal elegance.
Example
Example in poetry:
“Chiastic couplet is a two-line stanza with reversed word order in second line.”; “Couplet where second line reverses key words of the first.”
Additional Notes
A couplet (two lines) where the syntactical elements or key ideas of the first line are inverted in the second line (A B // B A); A concise and highly formal use of chiasmus; Related to epigram.
Also Known As
mirrored couplet crossing couplet reversed-ratio pair Antimetabole couplet
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