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Hydrophobic

Adjective
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

Literally water-repelling; metaphorically used in poetry to describe themes or images resisting emotional or thematic absorption.

Detailed Definition
Hydrophobic in poetic context metaphorically describes verse that resists fluidity, emotion, or organic flow—often through rigid form, dry diction, or intellectual detachment; it may critique sentimentality or embody themes of alienation, as in certain modernist poems that favor fragmentation over lyrical effusion.
Example
Example in poetry:
Hydrophobic: Though rare, hydrophobic imagery appears symbolically in poetry—e.g., in Sylvia Plath’s “Lady Lazarus,” where water represents both threat and purification, yet the speaker resists submersion.
Additional Notes
Hydrophobic: Literally “water-fearing”; in poetry, may symbolize aversion, purity, or alienation—rare but evocative in eco-poetry or psychological metaphors (e.g., oil on water as disconnection).
Also Known As
Water-repelling Liquid-avoiding Moisture-resistant Anti-aquatic
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