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Stress-based hexameter

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

An accentual verse line containing six stressed syllables, regardless of unstressed count, used in folk and oral traditions to maintain strong rhythmic drive.

Detailed Definition
Stress-based hexameter is a metrical line consisting of six primary stresses, regardless of syllable count, aligning with Germanic or Old English strong-stress traditions rather than classical quantitative meter; this form emphasizes rhythmic intensity over syllabic regularity, allowing variable unstressed syllables between beats, and appears in modern adaptations by poets like Ezra Pound who sought to revive native English prosody through accentual frameworks.
Example
Example in poetry:
Stress-based hexameter uses six strong stresses per line, regardless of syllables: “The wind howls through the broken streets of time and ash and bone” (6 stresses: wind, howls, bro-ken, streets, time, ash); “God walks in the ruins where the children used to play” (stresses on God, walks, ru-ins, chil-dren, used, play); “Fire eats the night and leaves no shadow for the dawn” (6 stresses); Anglo-Saxon-inspired modern verse often uses this form for epic tone.
Additional Notes
A Stress-based hexameter is a six-foot line where the meter is based solely on the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables (accentual verse), rather than the classical quantitative distinction of 'long' and 'short' syllables.
Also Known As
Accentual hexameter stress-hexameter strong-stress six-foot line
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