Meter in Greek and Latin Poetry

Terms used in discussions of metrics and notations for stressed and unstressed syllables in the study of Greek and Latin poetry.

Related Resources • Homer - Study Guide • Caesura • Epic Poetry • Diaeresis • Prosody • Dochmiacs • Iambic Trimeter • Anapests • Trochaic Trimeter • Elegiac Couplet • Poetry Intro

The following meters are the most common ones used in Greek and Latin poetry. In English, we talk about long and short syllables. In Greek and Latin verse, the syllables were stressed or unstressed. The slash represents a stressed syllable and the tilde an unstressed syllable. (Elsewhere you may find the stressed syllable represented by a dash and the unstressed syllable by the letter u.)

Iam

Trochee

Anapest

Dactyl

Spondee