Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
decasyllabic

decasyllabic

9.5
Having ten syllables, usually in one line of a poem
  • adjective
  • /ˌdɛkəˈsɪləbɪk/
  • Literature
: decasílabo
  • Many classic sonnets are known for their elegant decasyllabic lines that enhance their lyrical quality.

Examples

  • This first Death Song is a composition of 25 stanzas of 10 decasyllabic lines each, with a regular rhyme pattern ABBACDDCEE.

    Academic text (1992)

  • Indeed, a contemporaneous notebook shows how the decasyllabic count of the first lines enticed Frost to try his hand at a scansion: #

    Academic text (2016)

  • The poem features a beautiful rhythm made up of several decasyllabic verses that flow seamlessly.

  • In the competition, each entry was required to include at least one decasyllabic line to challenge the poets.

Surface Forms

decasyllabic positive

Morphology

decasyllabic = decasyllable (semi-transparent) = deca + syllable + ic

Forming an adjective from the noun 'decasyllable' with '-ic' is regular, but the numeric prefix 'deca-' may be unfamiliar to many learners.

Etymology

Decasyllabic comes from deca- meaning 'ten', as in decade, and syllabic from syllable meaning 'a unit of sound'. So decasyllabic means 'having ten syllables', for example a line of poetry with exactly ten syllables.