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iambus

Pronunciation: /ʌɪˈambəs/

Definition of iambus

noun (plural iambuses or iambi /-bʌɪ/)

Prosody
  • a metrical foot consisting of one short (or unstressed) syllable followed by one long (or stressed) syllable.

Origin:

late 16th century: Latin, from Greek iambos 'iambus, lampoon', from iaptein 'attack verbally' (because the iambic trimeter was first used by Greek satirists)

iambus in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of iambus in the US English dictionary

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