hexameter
noun
Forms hexameters hexametre
- noun (countable) A line in a poem having six metrical feet.
- noun (uncountable) A poetic metre in which each line has six feet.
Synonyms
Etymology
From Ancient Greek ἑξάμετρος (hexámetros). Equivalent to hexa- + meter. Piecewise doublet of sexameter.
Webster’s 1913
- noun A verse of six feet, the first four of which may be either dactyls or spondees, the fifth must regularly be a dactyl, and the sixth always a spondee. In this species of verse are composed the Iliad of Homer and the Æneid of Virgil. In English hexameters accent takes the place of quantity.
- adjective Having six metrical feet, especially dactyls and spondees.
Etymology [L., fr. Gr. hexamètre. See Six, and Meter.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “hexameter”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details