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full choliambic pentameter

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 five-foot choliambic (or “limping iambic”) line that retains its full metrical structure without catalexis, ending with a spondaic substitution.

Detailed Definition
Full choliambic pentameter is a five-foot line based on the choliamb (or “limping iamb”), a satiric Greek meter ending with a spondee or trochee instead of an iamb, creating a halting, ironic rhythm; adapted into English, it conveys moral critique or grotesque humor through metrical disruption.
Example
Example in poetry:
Full choliambic pentameter (limping iamb) ends with spondee: Mimics Greek satiric meter; rare in English but seen in Dryden’s satires; Alexander Pope’s “Dunciad” uses mock-heroic choliambic effects; modern attempts include A.E. Stallings’ metrical experiments; Victorian burlesques occasionally employed “limping” lines for comic effect.
Additional Notes
full choliambic pentameter: This is a combination of two metrical terms: choliambic (limping iamb, or scazon; an iambic line where the last foot is trochaic or spondaic, −∪), and pentameter (five feet); this specific combination is non-standard, suggesting a five-foot line with a deliberate metrical limp.
Also Known As
Choliambic pentameter line five-foot choliamb full choliambic verse Choliambic pentameter acatalectic
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