Anapest

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈænÉ™pÉ›st/
• Hyphenation: an + a + pest

Alternative forms

• anapaest UK
• anapæst archaic

Origin

From Latin anapaestus, from Ancient Greek ἀνάπαιστος (anapaistos, "struck back”, “reversed"), from ἀνά (ana, "back") + παίω (paiō, "I strike").

“anapæst” listed in the Oxford English Dictionary 2

nd

1989

Full definition of anapest

Noun

1. (prosody) A metrical foot consisting of three syllables, two short and one long (e.g the word "velveteen").
2. (prosody) A fragment, phrase or line of poetry or verse using this meter; e.g. “Every Who down in Whoville liked Christmas a lot, but the Grinch, who lived just north of Whoville, did NOT!” (Dr. Seuss, How the Grinch Stole Christmas.).

Synonyms

• antidactylus

Derived terms

• anapestic

Anagrams

• peasant