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dimeter anapest

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 poetic line consisting of two feet, each of which is an anapest (two unstressed syllables followed by a stressed syllable).

Detailed Definition
Dimeter anapest is a metrical line consisting of two anapestic feet (da-da-DUM da-da-DUM), creating a light, galloping rhythm often used for comic or narrative effect; though less common than iambic meters, it appears in lighthearted verse like Clement Clarke Moore’s “’Twas the Night Before Christmas” to convey energetic motion or whimsy.
Example
Example in poetry:
Dimeter anapest examples include lines like “In the night,” “On the shore,” two metrical feet each with unstressed-unstressed-stressed syllables repeated twice; simple rhythmic patterns used in children’s poetry and songs; “To the sky,” “In the dark,” as short rhythmic bursts in anapestic dimeter; two anapestic feet forming a lively, bouncing rhythm.
Additional Notes
dimeter anapest: A metrical line consisting of two anapestic feet (two unstressed syllables followed by one stressed:    /); a very short line that creates a quick, light, or tripping rhythm (e.g., "In the spring, / with a fling").
Also Known As
Two-foot anapest dimetric anapest short anapestic measure brief anapest Anapestic dimeter
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