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Dactylic pentameter catalectic

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 dactylic pentameter line missing its final unstressed syllable, creating a truncated, emphatic close common in classical elegiac couplets.

Detailed Definition
Dactylic pentameter catalectic is a metrical line consisting of five dactylic feet (each foot: stressed-unstressed-unstressed), with the final unstressed syllable omitted, creating a truncated or "cut-off" ending that imparts rhythmic urgency or finality; this form appears occasionally in classical and neoclassical poetry to vary cadence while maintaining dactylic momentum.
Example
Example in poetry:
Dactylic pentameter catalectic: "Hear the wild wind blowing cold—" (catalectic = final syllable omitted; five dactyls missing last unstressed syllable).
Additional Notes
Dactylic pentameter catalectic shortens final foot of five-dactyl line. Creates truncated ending. Related to acatalectic (complete) forms. Truncation adds emphasis or creates irregular cadence at line end.
Also Known As
Shortened five-foot dactylic Truncated pentameter dactyl Curtailed five-measure verse
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