Home › Glossary › Letter E

Epitritic substitution

Meter
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

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

The substitution of a standard metrical foot with an epitrite—a four-syllable foot (DUM-DUM-da-DUM)—to vary rhythm or add weight.

Detailed Definition
Epitritic substitution refers to the replacement of a standard metrical foot in a line of verse with an epitrite (u u u –) or its stress-based approximation in English, typically to introduce rhythmic surprise, emphasize a phrase, or accommodate natural speech patterns; while uncommon in accentual-syllabic poetry, such substitutions can be found in highly flexible or experimental meters where poets deliberately disrupt expected cadences to mirror psychological tension or thematic dissonance.
Example
Example in poetry:
Substituting epitrite (˘ ˘ ¯ ¯) for expected foot; Rare in English; Example: in classical translations; More theoretical than practical in accentual verse
Additional Notes
Replacing expected foot with epitrite. Metrical variation in quantitative verse. Creates weight, slows line. Rare in English. Related: metrical substitution, variation techniques.
Also Known As
Epitrite replacement Triple-long substitution Choral foot exchange
Skip to main content