Biceps is a point in a
metrical pattern where a pair of short syllables can freely be replaced by a long one. In Greek and Latin poetry, it is found in the
dactylic hexameter
Dactylic hexameter is a form of meter used in Ancient Greek epic and didactic poetry as well as in epic, didactic, satirical, and pastoral Latin poetry.
Its name is derived from Greek (, "finger") and (, "six").
Dactylic hexameter consists o ...
and the first half of a
dactylic pentameter
The dactylic pentameter is a verse-form which, in classical Greek and Latin poetry, follows a dactylic hexameter to make up an elegiac couplet. It features two halves, each consisting of two dactyls, for which spondees can be substituted in the fi ...
, and also in
anapaestic metres.
It is not to be confused with
resolution, which is a phenomenon where a normally long syllable in a line is sometimes replaced by two shorts. Resolution is typically found in an iambic metre such as the
iambic trimeter
The Iambic trimeter, in classical Greek and Latin poetry, is a meter of poetry consisting of three iambic metra (each of two feet) per line. In English poetry, it refers to a meter with three iambic feet.
In ancient Greek poetry and Latin po ...
or a trochaic metre such as the
trochaic septenarius
In ancient Greek and Latin literature, the trochaic septenarius (also known as the trochaic tetrameter catalectic) is a form of ancient poetic metre first used in 7th century BC Greek literature. It was one of the two most common metres of Roman ...
.
References
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Poetic rhythm
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