It can also be two words with the first word being an unstressed word, such as an article: In the examples below, we have put the stressed syllable in bold: First, let’s look at the “iamb” part of the term.Įxamples of an unstressed (short) syllable, followed by a stressed (long) syllable would be two-syllable words that have their stress on the second syllable. Let’s expand the two terms to help you understand them better. “Penta” means “five,” and “meter” means “to measure.” Pentameter therefore means five measures of iambs, or five feet. The term “iamb” refers to a foot, which is one unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable. In poetry, iambic pentameter refers to a line with five metrical feet. The meter refers to the number of syllables in a line of poetry, while the rhyme scheme, or rhyming pattern, indicates which lines in the poem rhyme. Structures for poems include a set meter and rhyme scheme. When you write a poem, you can choose whether you want to follow a set structure or do free verse.

Send us feedback about these examples.If you are studying Shakespeare or even poetry in general, you will most likely hear the term “iambic pentameter.” This refers to a type of structure for poems. These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pentameter.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.

2022 Washington is no stranger to iambic pentameter, but his Macbeth is more piercing in his sighs than in his utterances. 2022 From there, Bartlett uses Shakespearean iambic pentameter to point up the disparity between petty-minded behavior and grandiose dreams of a return to power. 2020 Poochigian's dexterous iambic pentameter makes this version of the 3rd-century BCE Greek tale a lively, engaging read. 2023 In the 16th century, English poets developed a distinctive sonnet style using a rhythm called iambic pentameter, where 10-syllable lines have a regular unstressed-stressed rhythmic pattern. 2020 Raised on jazz and classical and not rock and roll, Bacharach brought a level of melodic sophistication and romanticism - unconventional 5/4 time signatures, melodies that didn’t stick to standard iambic pentameter - into the top 40. 2023 While Deep-speare’s language model was learning about word probabilities from Project Gutenberg’s collection of sonnets, a separate rhythm model was learning about iambic pentameter. 2023 Ask for a poem in Shakespearean iambic pentameter about your dog Spot, and ChatGPT will comply. Recent Examples on the Web But all of this was before ChatGPT, which has no trouble with text generation, even with very difficult constraints like rhyming and iambic pentameter.

Sonnet Iambic Pentameter definition