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Compound double measure

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 metrical unit formed by combining two distinct rhythmic measures into a single, compound foot or phrase for expressive variation.

Detailed Definition
A metrical unit consisting of two measures or feet combined into a single larger rhythmic unit, creating longer rhythmic patterns than standard feet. This concept from classical prosody creates dipodic verse, where paired feet function as unified rhythmic segments. The compound nature allows for complex rhythmic effects and patterns beyond what simple foot-by-foot scansion reveals in the verse structure.
Example
Example in poetry:
In Gerard Manley Hopkins’ “The Windhover,” sprung rhythm creates compound double measure through stressed clusters; In Walt Whitman’s free verse, parallel clauses form compound double measure through syntactic rhythm; In Allen Ginsberg’s “Howl,” anaphoric lines (“who poverty and jazz and…” ) build compound double measure; In C.D. Wright’s “One Big Self,” documentary fragments create compound double measure through juxtaposition; In Muriel Rukeyser’s “The Book of the Dead,” testimonial and lyric merge into compound double measure.
Additional Notes
Advanced metrical concept from classical prosody. Creates rhythmic units longer than standard feet. Helpful for understanding complex rhythmic patterns in formal verse.
Also Known As
Dipodic measure Double foot Paired measure Epitritic dimeter
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