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Spondaic

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 metrical foot consisting of two long (stressed) syllables in a row: (--).

Detailed Definition
Spondaic refers to a metrical foot consisting of two stressed syllables (e.g., “heartbreak,” “downtown”), used in poetry to create emphasis, solemnity, or rhythmic disruption within predominantly iambic or trochaic lines; though rare as a sustained meter in English, spondees appear strategically to slow pace or convey weight, as in Milton’s “Rocks, caves, lakes, fens, bogs, dens, and shades of death.”
Example
Example in poetry:
Spondaic examples: “True blue”; “Heartbreak”; In “The Raven,” “Dirges for / lost Lenore” uses spondaic emphasis; Contemporary: “Black lives” as spondaic political phrase; Student exercise: “War drums” as spondaic opening; Another: “Stone cold” in elegy.
Additional Notes
Spondaic foot consists of two stressed syllables (DUM-DUM), rare but used in substitution for emphasis.
Also Known As
Double-long foot Heavy-heavy Two-stressed Long-long meter
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