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Sextuplet

Prosody
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 metrical grouping of six syllables or notes, often within compound meters

Detailed Definition
A sextuplet divides a measure into six equal parts, common in polyrhythmic music and specialized metrical schemes; in poetry, sextuplets create complex, cascading rhythmic patterns. Sextuplets appear in experimental and classical verse exploring non-traditional meters; they demonstrate how poets can expand beyond standard duple and triple divisions, creating sophisticated rhythmic effects that challenge conventional expectations and showcase virtuosity in metrical construction.
Example
Example in poetry:
In music-influenced poetry, a sextuplet (six notes in the time of four) might inspire six rapid syllables, as in Swinburne’s anapestic lines: “With a rush and a roar and a rattle”; In experimental verse, Cummings uses sextuplet-like clusters: “injust(in)human(ly)”; In Greek metrics, a dactylic hexameter line can be seen as containing sextuplet groupings; In rap poetry, sixteenth-note sextuplets appear in rapid-fire verses, e.g., in Black Thought’s lyrics; In nursery rhymes, “Hickory dickory dock” approximates a sextuplet rhythm; In Hopkins’s “The Windhover,” “Brute beauty and valour and act” uses six stressed syllables in quick succession like a sextuplet.
Additional Notes
A sextuplet is a group of six notes in music, but in prosody, it may refer metaphorically to a six-syllable metrical unit or a line with six metrical feet (e.g., hexameter). However, the term is uncommon in traditional prosody; it’s more likely encountered in discussions blending musical and poetic rhythm. When used, it implies a rapid or densely packed rhythmic segment. Prosodists should verify context—some modern poets or theorists may adopt musical terminology for experimental metrics.
Also Known As
six-syllable group hexasyllabic foot (rarely)
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