tetrameter

[ te-tram-i-ter ]

noun

1. Prosody. a verse of four feet.
2. Classical Prosody. a line consisting of four dipodies in trochaic, iambic, or anapestic meter.

adjective

1. Prosody. consisting of four metrical feet.

tetrameter

/ tɛˈtræmɪtə /

noun

1. a line of verse consisting of four metrical feet
2. a verse composed of such lines
3. (in classical prosody) a line of verse composed of four dipodies

Word History and Origins

Origin of tetrameter¹

1605–15; < Latin tetrametrus < Greek tetrámetros having four measures. See tetra-, meter ²

Example Sentences

This being so, Leithauser’s chapters cover such seemingly ho-hum subjects as iambic pentameter, iambic tetrameter, the stanza, enjambment, rhyming and wordplay.

From Washington Post

There were monkeypods, “planted as seedlings no taller than chives,” as Mr. Merwin wrote, in impeccable dactylic tetrameter, in an essay in “What Is a Garden?,” which centers on his work in Hawaii.

From New York Times

This is a variant on ballad measure, which is to say the stanza rhymes abcb and alternates tetrameter and trimeter phrasings.

From New York Times

In turgid anapestic tetrameter, the poem lauds Trump as “a leader whose courage is true / Whose virtues are solid and long overdue.”

From The New Yorker

As a nod to Dr. Seuss, I wanted to write my “If I Ran the Food System” column in anapestic tetrameter, but nothing rhymes with “crop-neutral insurance,” so I had to stick to prose.

From Washington Post