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Three-measure cretic

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 poetic line containing three cretic feet (long-short-long or stressed-unstressed-stressed)

Detailed Definition
Three-measure cretic is a metrical line containing three cretic feet or measures, each following the long-short-long or stressed-unstressed-stressed pattern. The term "measure" emphasizes the musical dimension of metrical feet, treating each cretic unit as rhythmic measure analogous to musical time. This nine-syllable line creates structured, balanced rhythm through three symmetrical units with distinctive rising-falling-rising pattern. While more manageable than longer cretic lines, it remains unusual in English poetry due to stress pattern challenges. When employed, the three-measure cretic produces formal, wavelike effects through its repetitive symmetry, creating dignified or ceremonial quality suitable for elevated subjects or ritualistic expression.
Example
Example in poetry:
The cretic foot (stressed-unstressed-stressed) appears in three-measure form in Longfellow’s “Song of Hiawatha”: “By the shore / of Gitche Gumee”; Gerard Manley Hopkins’ “The Windhover” uses cretic rhythms: “Brute beauty / and valour”; A.E. Housman’s “When I was one-and-twenty” contains cretic phrases like “Give pearls / away”; Ben Jonson’s “Drink to me only with thine eyes” uses cretic measures in lyrical toasts; Contemporary poet Annie Finch uses cretic meters in ritual poetry like “The Ghost of Meter”; Dylan Thomas’ “Do not go gentle” occasionally uses cretic emphasis: “Curse, bless, / me now”.
Additional Notes
Three-measure cretic is synonymous with three-foot cretic; “measure” is an older term for metrical foot, especially in classical prosody.
Also Known As
Trimeter cretic Three-beat amphimacer Triple cretic measure Cretic trimeter
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