Dactyl - Definition, Meaning & Synonyms

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SKIP TO CONTENT dactyl /ˈdæktl/ IPA guide

Other forms: dactyls

A dactyl is a unit of poetry consisting of three syllables, the first of which is stressed. The word "poetry" is itself a great example of a dactyl!

When a poem is made up of three-syllable metrical feet, and the emphasis naturally lands on the first syllable of each foot, you call those units dactyls. The Greek root is daktylos, which means "unit of measure" but also "finger." The literary term came from the "finger" meaning — the three bones in a finger represent the three syllables in a dactyl. These lines from Alfred, Lord Tennyson's "Charge of the Light Brigade" are written in dactyls: "Flashed all their sabres bare, / Flashed as they turned in air / Sabring the gunners there."

Definitions of dactyl

noun a finger or toe in human beings or corresponding body part in other vertebrates synonyms: digit see moresee less types: show 11 types... hide 11 types... minimus the fifth digit; the little finger or little toe finger any of the terminal members of the hand (sometimes excepting the thumb) toe one of the digits of the foot pollex, thumb the thick short innermost digit of the forelimb forefinger, index, index finger the finger next to the thumb annualry, ring finger the third finger (especially of the left hand) middle finger the second finger; between the index finger and the ring finger little finger, pinkie, pinky the finger farthest from the thumb big toe, great toe, hallux the first largest innermost toe hammertoe a deformed toe which is bent in a clawlike arch little toe the fifth smallest outermost toe type of: appendage, extremity, member an external body part that projects from the body
noun a metrical unit with stressed-unstressed-unstressed syllables see moresee less type of: foot, metrical foot, metrical unit (prosody) a group of 2 or 3 syllables forming the basic unit of poetic rhythm

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Vocabulary lists containing dactyl

Some Helpful Poetry Terms

One of the stumbling blocks when trying to study poetry is that it seems like a different world. Familiar things, like words, are put to unfamiliar use, and there is an entire descriptive vocabulary that is completely foreign and quite often puzzling. This list seeks to explain the words used to describe poetry through examples from famous poems. Nassim Nicholas Taleb said, "If you want to annoy a poet, explain his poetry," but we are willing to take that risk to make the world of literary analysis a little clearer and further illuminate the mystery of poetry.

Poetry: Structure and Meter

You'll understand rhyme's reason when you practice this list of words related the structure of poetry. To learn even more about poetry, explore our lists on Genre and Literary Devices.

Reading: Literature - Poetry - High School

If you want to be well-versed in poetry, review this vocabulary list. Learn about parts of a poem, genres of poetry, literary devices, rhyme and meter, and more. This list is truly poetry in motion!

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