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Epitritic

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 foot consisting of three long syllables and one short

Detailed Definition
Epitritic refers to a metrical foot consisting of two short (or unstressed) syllables followed by two long (or stressed) syllables (˘ ˘ – –), common in Greek lyric poetry; its syncopated, weighty rhythm conveys solemnity or resolution, and though rare in English, it influences mixed meters seeking rhythmic contrast.
Example
Example in poetry:
Epitritic meter combines iambic and epitritic feet; Appears in Greek choral odes; English examples rare, but Herrick’s “To the Virgins” mixes epitritic variants; Epitritic rhythm creates syncopation in hymns and carols.
Additional Notes
Related to epitrite foot (three long, one short syllable). Classical quantitative meter. Four types based on short position. Weighty, slow rhythm. Related: epitritic meter, classical prosody.
Also Known As
three-long foot classical meter
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