Standard Lemma guide

tetrameter

noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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No pronunciation record was provided for this word.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A line in a poem having four metrical feet.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: communications, journalism, literature, media, poetry, publishing, writing

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

A poetic metre in which each line has four feet.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: human-sciences, linguistics, phonology, prosody, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

a verse line having four metrical feet

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: verse, verse line

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *kwetwóres Proto-Hellenic *kwétwores Ancient Greek τέσσᾰρες (téssăres) Ancient Greek τετρᾰ- (tetră-)bor. English tetra- English meter English tetrameter From tetra- + meter.

Across languages

Translations

14 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Albanian: tetrametër — a line in a poem having four metrical feet (poetry)
  • Catalan: tetrámetro — a line in a poem having four metrical feet (poetry)
  • Danish: tetrameter — a line in a poem having four metrical feet (poetry)
  • Finnish: tetrametri — a line in a poem having four metrical feet (poetry)
  • French: tétramètre — a line in a poem having four metrical feet (poetry)
  • Galician: tetrâmetro — a line in a poem having four metrical feet (poetry)
  • German: Tetrameter — a line in a poem having four metrical feet (poetry)
  • Greek: τετράμετρο (tetrámetro) — a line in a poem having four metrical feet (poetry)
  • Portuguese: tetrâmetro — a line in a poem having four metrical feet (poetry)
  • Romanian: tetrametru — a line in a poem having four metrical feet (poetry)
  • Russian: тетра́метр (tetrámetr) — a line in a poem having four metrical feet (poetry)
  • Spanish: tetrámetro — a line in a poem having four metrical feet (poetry)
  • Swedish: tetrameter — a line in a poem having four metrical feet (poetry)
  • Vietnamese: câu thơ tứ bộ vi — a line in a poem having four metrical feet (poetry)