a foot of three syllables, two short followed by one long in quantitative meter, and two unstressed followed by one stressed in accentual meter, as in for the nonce.
Also, an⋅a⋅paest.
Origin: 1580–90; < L anapaestus < Gk anápaistos struck back, reversed (as compared with a dactyl), equiv. to ana-ana-+ pais- (var. s. of paíein to strike) + -tos ptp. suffix
1678, "two short syllables followed by a long one," from L. anapestus, from Gk. anapaistos "struck back, rebounding," verbal adj. from anapaiein "to strike back," from ana- "back" + paiein "to strike," so called because it reverses the dactyl.
[an-uh-pest] 
