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alexandrine
alexandrine , in prosody, a line of 12 syllables (or 13 if the last syllable is unstressed). Its name probably derives from the fact that some poems of the 12th and 13th cent. about Alexander the Great were written in this meter. In French, rhyming couplets of two alexandrines of equal length, usually containing four accents, have been the classic poetic form since the time of Ronsard, e.g., in the dramas of Racine and Corneille. In English an iambic hexameter line is often called an alexandrine. The most notable example is found in the Spenserian stanza, which contains eight iambic pentameters and an alexandrine rhyming with the last pentameter. Pope's "Essay on Criticism" contains what is probably the most quoted alexandrine in English literature: A needless alexandrine ends the song |
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"alexandrine." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 1 Jun. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "alexandrine." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (June 1, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-alxndrn.html "alexandrine." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved June 01, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-alxndrn.html |
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alexandrine
alexandrine, an iambic line of six feet, which is the French heroic verse, and in English is used, e.g., as the last line of the Spenserian stanza or as a variant in a poem of heroic couplets. The name is derived from the fact that certain 12th- and 13th-cent. French poems on Alexander the Great were written in this metre.
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MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "alexandrine." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 1 Jun. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "alexandrine." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (June 1, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-alexandrine.html MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "alexandrine." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Retrieved June 01, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-alexandrine.html |
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alexandrine
al·ex·an·drine / ˌaligˈzandrin; -ˌdrēn/ Prosody • adj. (of a line of verse) having six iambic feet. • n. (usu. alexandrines) an alexandrine line. |
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"alexandrine." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 1 Jun. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "alexandrine." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (June 1, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-alexandrine.html "alexandrine." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved June 01, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-alexandrine.html |
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alexandrine
alexandrine pert. to verse of twelve syllables. XVI. — F. alexandrin, f. Alexandre, title of a famous OF. romance (XII–XIII), concerning Alexander the Great, in which the metre is used; see -INE1.
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T. F. HOAD. "alexandrine." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 1 Jun. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "alexandrine." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (June 1, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-alexandrine.html T. F. HOAD. "alexandrine." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved June 01, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-alexandrine.html |
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alexandrine
alexandrine an iambic line of twelve syllables or six feet. The term comes (in the late 16th century) from French, from Alexandre (see Alexander1), the subject of an Old French poem in this metre.
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "alexandrine." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 1 Jun. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "alexandrine." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (June 1, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-alexandrine.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "alexandrine." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved June 01, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-alexandrine.html |
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alexandrine
alexandrine
•canine • asinine • leonine • saturnine
•Antonine • pavonine • rapine
•alpine, cisalpine
•pitchpine • orpine
•lupine, supine
•porcupine • vulpine • salamandrine
•alexandrine • sapphirine • taurine
•endocrine • aventurine • vulturine
•colubrine • lacustrine • estuarine
•viperine • passerine • catarrhine
•intrauterine, uterine
•adulterine • riverine • ensign
•internecine, V-sign
•piscine • porcine • cosine • thylacine
•countersign
•hircine, ursine
•shoeshine • moonshine • sunshine
•earthshine
•adamantine, Byzantine, elephantine
•Tridentine • Levantine • Bechstein
•Epstein • amethystine • Rubinstein
•Frankenstein • Palestine • Philistine
•turpentine • Einstein • Eisenstein
•cispontine, transpontine
•serotine • infantine • Wittgenstein
•Argentine • Palatine
•Ballantyne, valentine
•eglantine • Hammerstein
•clementine • vespertine • serpentine
•Florentine
•Lichtenstein, Liechtenstein
•Constantine • nemertine • Bernstein
•hyacinthine, labyrinthine
•Jugurthine • grapevine • bovine
•Glühwein • cervine • equine
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Cite this article
"alexandrine." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 1 Jun. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "alexandrine." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (June 1, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-alexandrine.html "alexandrine." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved June 01, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-alexandrine.html |
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