dactyl

[ dak-til ]
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noun
  1. Prosody. a foot of three syllables, one long followed by two short in quantitative meter, or one stressed followed by two unstressed in accentual meter, as in gently and humanly.Symbol: 

  2. a finger or toe.

Origin of dactyl

1
1350–1400; Middle English <Latin dactylus<Greek dáktylos finger, a dactyl, referring to the three joints of the finger

Words Nearby dactyl

Other definitions for Dactyl (2 of 3)

Dactyl

or Dak·tyl

[ dak-til ]

noun,plural Dac·tyls, Dac·tyl·i [dak-ti-lahy]. /ˈdæk tɪˌlaɪ/. Classical Mythology.
  1. any of a number of beings dwelling on Mount Ida and working as metalworkers and magicians.

Origin of Dactyl

2
<Greek Dáktyloi (Idaîoi) (Idaean) craftsmen or wizards (plural of dáktylos;see dactyl)

Other definitions for -dactyl (3 of 3)

-dactyl

  1. variant of -dactylous, especially with nouns: pterodactyl.

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How to use dactyl in a sentence

  • The dactyl, a foot of three syllables, the first long and the two last short, is used principally in the first place in the line.

British Dictionary definitions for dactyl

dactyl

/ (ˈdæktɪl) /


noun
  1. Also called: dactylic prosody a metrical foot of three syllables, one long followed by two short (– ◡ ◡): Compare bacchius

  2. zoology any digit of a vertebrate

Origin of dactyl

1
C14: via Latin from Greek daktulos finger, dactyl, comparing the finger's three joints to the three syllables

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012