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Definition of "ictus" [‖Ic•tus]

  • Medicine A sudden attack, blow, stroke, or seizure. (noun)
  • The accent that falls on a stressed syllable in a line of scanned verse. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "ictus" in a sentence
  • "If you don't know how to conduct, that's okay - the game is more concerned that you can give a consistent flick, or "ictus," rather than whether or not you know what a"
  • "In describing what happened in Milan, the phrase “ictus occuli ” is used at the apex of the pilgrim`s ascent when he touches God or God touched him but only for the briefest of moments."
  • "But these longs again are peculiar, and sometimes strike the European ear as shorts, thus adding a difficulty for those who would represent Oriental metres by western feet, ictus and accent."