anapest

or an·a·paest

[ an-uh-pest ]

nounProsody.
  1. 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.

Origin of anapest

1
1580–90; <Latin anapaestus<Greek anápaistos struck back, reversed (as compared with a dactyl), equivalent to ana-ana- + pais- (variant stem of paíein to strike) + -tos past participle suffix

Other words from anapest

  • an·a·pes·tic, an·a·paes·tic, adjective
  • an·a·pes·ti·cal·ly, an·a·paes·ti·cal·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use anapest in a sentence

  • Then that scene where she and the king dance the dactyls, and the anapaests go to the chorus.

    Sandra Belloni, Complete | George Meredith
  • For, although accentual rhythms admit dactyls and anapaests, these have not proved generally serviceable.

  • A good example of the curious 'skimble skamble' anapaests before Dryden and Prior.

  • Come, you, who play spring melodies upon the harmonious flute, lead off our anapaests.

    The Birds | Aristophanes
  • I do not find these anapaests in the Elizabethan or in the seventeenth-century poets, or most rarely.

    Hearts of Controversy | Alice Meynell