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Double 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 line in which two syllables are missing at the end, creating double truncation

Detailed Definition
Double catalectic describes a metrical line that is missing two syllables from its expected ending, creating a sharply truncated effect; this deficiency intensifies rhythmic urgency or finality, often used in dramatic or martial verse to convey abruptness, as in certain Greek choral odes or modern experimental metrics.
Example
Example in poetry:
In Greek tragedy, double catalectic lines omit two final syllables for solemn effect; Latin elegiac couplets sometimes use double catalectic hexameters; Ben Jonson’s “Slow, Slow, Fresh Fount” ends lines with double catalexis; Double catalectic appears in medieval Latin hymns for liturgical gravity; Contemporary poet David Jones uses double catalectic lines in “The Anathemata.”
Additional Notes
Double catalectic: A line of verse that is missing two unstressed syllables at the end of the line, creating a strongly truncated or abrupt ending. Related: Catalexis.
Also Known As
Twin catalectic paired catalectic double truncation ending loss sequence Brachycatalectic
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