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Surplus-syllable 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

A hexameter line with one or more extra syllables beyond scansion rules

Detailed Definition
Surplus-syllable hexameter is a variation of the traditional six-foot metrical line where one or more extra syllables are added, slightly breaking strict meter to create emphasis, elongate rhythm, or mirror organic speech. This expansion can lend a rolling, luxuriant feel to the verse, as in passages that require lingering over vivid description or emotional content.
Example
Example in poetry:
In Longfellow’s “Evangeline,” dactylic hexameter occasionally includes a surplus syllable for lyrical flow: “This is the forest primeval, the murmuring pines and the hemlocks” (13 syllables instead of 12); Classical Latin hexameter sometimes permits a spondaic substitution creating syllabic surplus, as in Virgil’s “Arma virumque cano”; In modern adaptations, Derek Walcott’s “Omeros” uses surplus-syllable hexameter to blend Homeric form with Caribbean speech rhythms; Contemporary poet Annie Finch employs surplus-syllable hexameter in “Calendars” to evoke ritual time; In “The Raven,” Poe’s trochaic octameter lines like “And the silken, sad, uncertain rustling of each purple curtain” (16 syllables) function as a surplus-syllable hexameter analog in English stress-based meter.
Additional Notes
Surplus-syllable hexameter includes extra syllables beyond the standard six feet, often via elision or feminine endings. Contrast with shortened hexameter. May signal emotional overflow—read aloud to judge if the surplus enhances or disrupts rhythm.
Also Known As
Hyper-hexameter Extended scansion line Surplus hexameter Hexameter hypercatalectic
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