dodecasyllable

[ doh-dek-uh-sil-uh-buh l, doh-dek- ]
/ doʊˌdɛk əˈsɪl ə bəl, ˌdoʊ dɛk- /

noun

a word or line of verse containing 12 syllables.

Origin of dodecasyllable

First recorded in 1745–55; dodeca- + syllable

Words nearby dodecasyllable

dodecaphonic, dodecaphonism, dodecastyle, dodecastylos, dodecasyllabic, dodecasyllable, dodecyl aldehyde, dodecylphenol, dodge, dodge ball, dodge city

Example sentences from the Web for dodecasyllable

  • Hitherto the decasyllable and the dodecasyllable had been used indiscriminately, and Ronsard's Franciade is written in the former.

    A Short History of French Literature |George Saintsbury

  • This dodecasyllable has a short metrical pause after the sixth syllable, and a longer one after the twelfth.

    Legends, Tales and Poems |Gustavo Adolfo Becquer

British Dictionary definitions for dodecasyllable

dodecasyllable
/ (ˌdəʊdɛkəˈsɪləbəl) /

noun

prosody a line of twelve syllables