dochmius

English

Etymology

From Latin dochmius, from Ancient Greek δόχμιος (dókhmios, “oblique; dochmius”).

Noun

dochmius (plural dochmii or dochmiuses)

1. (poetry) A metrical foot of five syllables used in Greek tragedy for highly anguished scenes. The metrical pattern is typically: short-long-long-short-long.
   • 1843, William O'Brien, The Ancient Rhythmical Art Recovered, page 6:

     Yet there is good reason to doubt the existence of any such; —good reason to think, that dochmiuses belong to the triple rhythm

   • 1910, R. J. Walker, Anti Mias: An Essay in Isometry, page 228:

     This chorus, which consists almost entirely of dochmii, is so corrupt as to present various problems of an almost insoluble character, although portions of it have yielded to the brilliant emendatory efforts of Hermann.

   • 1912, John Williams White, The Verse of Greek Comedy, page 296:

     Every dochmius is catalectic, representing an original phrase of nine primary times.

Related terms

• dochmiac
• hypodochmius

Latin

Etymology

From Ancient Greek δόχμιος (dókhmios).

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈdokʰ.mi.us/, [ˈd̪ɔkʰmiʊs̠]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈdok.mi.us/, [ˈd̪ɔkmius]

Noun

dochmius m (genitive dochmiī or dochmī); second declension

1. dochmius (metrical foot)

Declension

Second-declension noun.

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	dochmius	dochmiī
Genitive	dochmiī dochmī1	dochmiōrum
Dative	dochmiō	dochmiīs
Accusative	dochmium	dochmiōs
Ablative	dochmiō	dochmiīs
Vocative	dochmie	dochmiī

¹Found in older Latin (until the Augustan Age).

References

• “dochmius”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “dochmius”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers