tetrasyllable

[ te-truh-sil-uh-buhl, te-truh-sil- ]

noun

1. a word or line of verse of four syllables.

tetrasyllable

/ ˌtɛtrəˈsɪləbəl; ˌtɛtrəsɪˈlæbɪk /

noun

1. a word of four syllables

Derived Forms

• tetrasyllabic, adjective

Other Words From

• tet·ra·syl·lab·ic [te-tr, uh, -si-, lab, -ik], tetra·syl·labi·cal adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of tetrasyllable¹

First recorded in 1580–90; tetra- + syllable

Example Sentences

His eyes are deep-set and uncommonly circular; when he stretches them into surprise—often in accompaniment of a spiked tetrasyllable like “ri-di-cu-lous,” or “pre-pos-ter-ous,” or “Max Kel-ler-man”—they are perfect O’s.

From The New Yorker

Tetrasyllable, tet′ra-sil-a-bl, n. a word of four syllables.—adjs.

From Project Gutenberg

"One is monosyllabic, the other tetrasyllable," Spindrift begins.

From Time Magazine Archive

Each line ends with a trisyllable or a tetrasyllable, with dissyllabic rhyme running through the quatrain.

From Project Gutenberg