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Five-foot Bacchic

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 pentameter line composed of five Bacchic feet (short-long-long) in succession

Detailed Definition
Five-foot Bacchic is a metrical line composed of five Bacchic feet, each consisting of two stressed syllables followed by one unstressed (DUM-DUM-da); though rare in English due to its heavy, driving rhythm, this meter can convey urgency, ritual intensity, or martial energy, and its five-foot extension amplifies these qualities into a sustained, pounding cadence suitable for dramatic or incantatory verse.
Example
Example in poetry:
Five-foot Bacchic uses a metrical foot of long-short-short repeated five times; Rare in English, but possible in quantitative meter; Example: “Glorious dawn breaks swift and bright” (if scanned quantitatively); “Hear the drums pound loud and fast” approximates the rhythm
Additional Notes
A Five-foot Bacchic line is a rare and complex metrical line composed of five Bacchic feet, where a Bacchic foot is typically one short (unstressed) syllable followed by two long (stressed) syllables (⌣––), making a very heavy and slow rhythm; this classical meter is highly unusual in English verse.
Also Known As
Five-foot Bacchiac meter Bacchiac pentameter Bacchic pentameter line
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