Home › Glossary › Letter C

Chronogram

Device
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

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 in which certain letters serve as numerals indicating a date

Detailed Definition
A chronogram is a poem or inscription in which specific letters (usually Roman numerals) are highlighted to encode a date; often used in epitaphs or dedications, it merges literary artistry with cryptographic play, inviting readers to decipher temporal meaning within the text.
Example
Example in poetry:
A chronogram embeds a date in capitalized letters (e.g., “My Day Closed” = MDC = 1600), as in epitaphs: “In LVDVM hIC IACET” (LVDVM = 1500 + 500 + 5 + 1000 = 3005?—used symbolically).
Additional Notes
Verse where letters or words encode dates through Roman numeral values, creating puzzle element. Common in commemorative inscriptions. Capital letters in phrase sum to significant year. Baroque period specialty.
Other Meanings of “Chronogram”
Also Known As
Date poem time-code verse hidden date numerical puzzle poem date acrostic Chronostich
Skip to main content