Iambic tetrameter

From Poetry Wiki

Iambic tetrameter is a meter in poetry. It refers to a line consisting of four iambic feet. The word "tetrameter" simply means that there are four feet in the line; iambic tetrameter is a line comprising four iambs. The term originally applied to the quantitative meter of Classical Greek poetry, in which an iamb consisted of a short syllable followed by a long syllable. The term was adopted to describe the equivalent meter in English Accentual-syllabic verse, where an iamb refers to an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable.

Simple example

An iambic foot is an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable. A line of iambic tetrameter is four of such feet in a row:

da

DUM

da

DUM

da

DUM

da

DUM

See the article on iambic pentameter for a more detailed presentation of the basic rhythm of iambic lines.

An example:

x	/		x	/		x	/		x	/
For-	get	|	not	yet	|	the	tried	|	in-	tent

Another:

x	/		x	/		x	/		x	/
Come	live	|	with	me	|	and	be	|	my	love

(The Passionate Shepherd to His Love, by Christopher Marlowe)