Meaning & use
tetrameter
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Meaning
nouncountable or uncountabletechnical
A line of poetry with four metrical feet, a common rhythm in English verse.
Grammar: Countable when referring to a specific line ('a tetrameter'), uncountable when referring to the meter itself ('written in tetrameter').
Patterns
- in tetrameter
- iambic tetrameter
- a line of tetrameter
Many nursery rhymes are written in tetrameter, giving them a singsong rhythm.
The poem alternates between tetrameter and trimeter lines.
She analyzed the use of iambic tetrameter in the sonnet.
Word forms
| plural | tetrameters |
|---|
Common combinations
- iambic tetrameter
- The poet used iambic tetrameter, with four iambs per line.
- written in tetrameter
- The entire ballad is written in tetrameter.
- a line of tetrameter
- Each line of tetrameter has four stressed beats.
Synonyms and how they differ
- four-beat line
- A less technical way to describe the same rhythm; use tetrameter in formal literary discussion.
Word family
- pentameter noun
- A line of poetry with five metrical feet.
- trimeter noun
- A line of poetry with three metrical feet.
- tetrametric adjective
- Relating to or written in tetrameter.
Commonly confused: tetrameter or pentameter? tetrameter or trimeter?
tetrameter vs pentameter
Pentameter has five feet per line, while tetrameter has four. Shakespeare's sonnets are mostly in iambic pentameter.
tetrameter vs trimeter
Trimeter has three feet per line; do not confuse the prefixes tetra- (four) and tri- (three).
Practice
A poem written in tetrameter has how many metrical feet per line?
Choose one answer.
The prefix tetra- means 'four', so tetrameter has four metrical feet per line. Three feet is trimeter, and five feet is pentameter.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “tetrameter”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.