Three-foot cretic is a metrical line containing three cretic feet, each following the long-short-long pattern in quantitative meter or stressed-unstressed-stressed in accentual-syllabic verse. This creates a nine-syllable line with balanced, wavelike rhythm through three symmetrical units. The term "three-foot cretic" uses classical metrical terminology, connecting the pattern to its origins in Greek and Latin prosody. Among cretic lines, the three-foot version is relatively more practical in English poetry, though still uncommon due to natural stress patterns. When employed, three-foot cretic produces formal, measured effects without excessive length, lending dignified, almost ceremonial quality through its symmetrical structure.

Three-foot cretic uses three cretic (long-short-long or stressed-unstressed-stressed) feet per line—creates a compact, rhythmic pulse suitable for epigrams or ritual verse.