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 Diaeresis
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Related Terms
• Meter
• Caesura
• Diaeresis
• Prosody
• Dochmiacs
• Iambic Trimeter
• Anapests
• Trochaic Trimeter
• Elegiac Couplet
• Poetry Intro
• Epic Poetry
Definition: From prosody, the term diaeresis comes up when reading Greek and Latin poetry, including the Greek tragedies, the epics of Homer, and the Aeneid, by Vergil. A diaeresis is a pause between one metron and the next, at the end of a word, generally marked with two vertical lines. Diaeresis is distinguished from a caesura (both of which mark word ends) by where it lies in the line of poetry. The diaeresis comes between feet; whereas the caesura comes within a metrical foot and, unlike a caesura, a diaeresis doesn't necessarily represent a pause in the sense of the words.

From the Greek diairein = to divide or tear away.

Pronunciation: di-aer'-e-sis • (noun)

Examples: In the opening line of Vergil's Aeneid, the diaeresis precedes the last two metrical feet: primus ab oris; whereas the caesura comes after cano:
Arma virumque cano, Troiae qui primus ab oris
(Arms and the man I sing, the first who from the Trojan shore)

Other spellings: Dieresis

Related Resources:

Tragedy - Setting the Stage

Terminology for Drama (especially tragedy)

Elsewhere on the Web:

Introduction to the Dacyllic Hexameter

4. Caesura and Diaeresis
Scroll down for information on diaeresis and other rules for Greek and Latin poetry.


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From N.S. Gill,
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