Check out the examples below: Example #1. Shakespeare’s sonnets are known for using iambic pentameter. Examples of Iambic Pentameter in Literature unstressed-stressed pattern? We put the stressed syllables in bold:īased on these two checks, the above line is in iambic pentameter.checking that the stress of the words are in a pattern of unstressed-stressed all throughout the line.įor example, check this line from “Twelfth Night” by William Shakespeare:.checking the number of syllables in the line (is it ten?).Through this definition, you can tell if something is in iambic pentameter by doing two things: How Do You Know If Something Is in Iambic Pentameter?

– To day in London, Kay re leased her cat. With each foot containing two syllables, this means that five metrical feet equals ten syllables in total. It can also be two words with the first word being an unstressed word, such as an article: In the examples below, we have put the stressed syllable in bold: First, let’s look at the “iamb” part of the term.Įxamples of an unstressed (short) syllable, followed by a stressed (long) syllable would be two-syllable words that have their stress on the second syllable. Let’s expand the two terms to help you understand them better. “Penta” means “five,” and “meter” means “to measure.” Pentameter therefore means five measures of iambs, or five feet. The term “iamb” refers to a foot, which is one unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable. In poetry, iambic pentameter refers to a line with five metrical feet. The meter refers to the number of syllables in a line of poetry, while the rhyme scheme, or rhyming pattern, indicates which lines in the poem rhyme. Structures for poems include a set meter and rhyme scheme. When you write a poem, you can choose whether you want to follow a set structure or do free verse.

If you are studying Shakespeare or even poetry in general, you will most likely hear the term “iambic pentameter.” This refers to a type of structure for poems.

Is iambic pentameter a sonnet