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Definition of "tetrameter" [te•tram•e•ter]

  • A line of verse consisting of four metrical feet. (noun)
  • A line of verse consisting of four measures of two feet each, especially one in iambic, trochaic, or anapestic meter in classical prosody. (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 "tetrameter" in a sentence
  • "The poem is written mostly in tetrameter, which is common enough."
  • "A sudden hexameter will burst forth from a poem written in tetrameter, for instance, or a line will turn up that is difficult to scan at all."
  • "He was working in something we would call anapestic tetrameter, which is also the rhythm of “Twas the night before Christmas.”"