prosody

C2+ Topic:Communication

US /ˈprɑsədi/ UK /ˈprɒsədi/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
the patterns of rhythm, stress, and intonation in speech or verse

She studied the prosody of Old English alliterative poetry.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · the patterns of rhythm,... meterscansionversificationrhythm intonation cadence

Word family

Derived forms prosodicprosodist

Related forms ode

Simplified etymology

Prosody comes from Greek prosōidia, a term associated with the musical pitch patterns of speech. The Greek word was translated into Latin using cantus ‘song’, the root reflected in accent; prosody entered English in the late Middle Ages with reference to versification.

Etymology

From Latin prosodia, from Ancient Greek prosōidia ('a song sung to music; the modulation of voice'), from pros ('to, in addition to') + ōidē ('song, ode').

prosōidia Ancient Greek ōidē Ancient Greek

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Communication Language & Linguistics Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# prosody

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈprɑsədi/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈprɒsədi/

## Meanings
1. the patterns of rhythm, stress, and intonation in speech or verse

## Examples
- She studied the prosody of Old English alliterative poetry.

## Synonyms
- meter
- scansion
- versification
- rhythm
- intonation
- cadence

## Derived Forms
- prosodic
- prosodist

## Related Forms
- ode

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: prosōidia
- Root: ōidē

## Etymology
From Latin prosodia, from Ancient Greek prosōidia ('a song sung to music; the modulation of voice'), from pros ('to, in addition to') + ōidē ('song, ode').

## AI Etymology
Prosody is from Latin prosodia, from Ancient Greek prosōidia ('a song sung to music; the modulation of voice'), from pros ('to, in addition to') + ōidē ('song, ode'). Important recorded forms include prosōidia (Ancient Greek) and ōidē (Ancient Greek). Morphologically, the word preserves a built structure whose named elements carry the historical sense into English. The modern sense remains close to that composition, with the parts narrowing into a single lexical item. In current use it covers the patterns of rhythm, stress, and intonation in speech or verse. The wider family includes derived forms such as prosodic and prosodist and related words such as ode.

## Topics
- Communication
- Language & Linguistics
- Word Formation & Derivatives

markdown