Okuzeka
Literature vocabulary · Poetry

Iambic pentameter

Meaning in literature, with examples

/aɪˌæmbɪk penˈtæmɪtə/nounAdvanced term

In literature, iambic pentameter means: A line of poetry made of five iambs, each an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed one, giving ten syllables: da-DUM da-DUM da-DUM da-DUM da-DUM.

In Turkish: iambik pentametre, beş ayaklı iambik ölçü

How it is used

The most important meter in English poetry, used by Chaucer, Shakespeare, Milton and Wordsworth. Unrhymed iambic pentameter is called blank verse; rhymed pairs are heroic couplets. It is said to be close to the natural rhythm of English speech.

Example sentences

  1. Most of the lines in Hamlet are written in iambic pentameter.

  2. Clap the stresses to check whether the line is really iambic pentameter.

Common collocations

  • written in iambic pentameter
  • unrhymed iambic pentameter
  • blank verse
  • a line of iambic pentameter
  • meterA regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in poetry, measured in units called feet, such as the iamb (da-DUM) or the trochee (DUM-da).
  • rhythmThe pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables, pauses and speed in a line of poetry or prose, which gives it a sense of movement.
  • sonnetA poem of fourteen lines with a fixed rhyme scheme, usually in iambic pentameter in English, often about love or a single strong feeling.
  • coupletA pair of consecutive lines of poetry, usually of the same length and rhyming with each other, that form a unit of meaning.
  • verseWriting arranged in lines with a rhythm, as opposed to prose; also a single line of a poem or a group of lines in a song.

More terms: Poetry

Practise with graded reading

Reading at the right level is the fastest way to make new words stick. Pick free English books by level: