Etymology : Latin iambus, from Greek iambos
Pronunciation : 'I-"am(b)
Function : noun
Date : 1586
1. (Poetry) iambus, foot consisting of two syllables (the first syllable is long and the second short or the first syllable is stressed and the second unstressed); verse composed of iambic feet. of or pertaining to or composed of iambics (poetic foot consisting of two syllables). iambic\i*am"bic\, n.
2. (pros.) (a) an iambic foot; an iambus. (b) a verse composed of iambic feet.note: the following couplet consists of iambic verses. thy gen- | ius calls | thee not | to pur- | chase fame in keen | iam- | bics, but | mild an- | agram.
3. a satirical poem (such poems having been anciently written in iambic verse); a satire; a lampoon.iambic \i*am"bic\ , a. [l. iambicus, gr. : cf. f. iambique.].
4. (pros.) consisting of a short syllable followed by a long one, or of an unaccented syllable followed by an accented; as, an iambic foot.
5. pertaining to, or composed of, iambics; as, an iambic verse; iambic meter. see:
lambus.
6. Consisting of a short syllable followed by a long one, or of an unaccented syllable followed by an accented; as, an iambic foot.
7. Pertaining to, or composed of, iambics; as, an iambic verse; iambic meter.
8. See Lambus.
9. An iambic foot; an iambus.
10. A verse composed of iambic feet.
11. A satirical poem ; a satire; a lampoon. a verse line consisting of iambs of or consisting of iambs; "iambic pentameter".
12. An iambus or iambic. a metrical unit with unstressed-stressed syllables.