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Pentina

Form
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-line variation of the sestina using five end-words rotated

Detailed Definition
Pentina is a five-line stanza form, often with a specific rhyme scheme (e.g., ABABA) or syllabic count, designed to balance symmetry and variation; it may serve as a building block in longer poems or function as a compact lyrical unit exploring a single thematic cluster.
Example
Example in poetry:
Pentina: Five-line stanzas with rotating end-words (like sestina but quintet); John Frederick Nims’ “Pentina” demonstrates the form; Contemporary poets use it for compact thematic cycling; Structure challenges linear narrative expectations
Additional Notes
A five-stanza form with rotating end-words, similar to sestina but shorter. Each stanza uses the same five end-words in a specific mathematical pattern. Compare with sestina (six end-words) and tritina (three).
Also Known As
Five-line repetend form Pentina variant Five-refrain poem Quintuple-repeat verse
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