tetrasyllable

(ˌtɛtrəˈsɪləbəl)

(Linguistics) a word of four syllables

tetrasyllabic, ˌtetrasylˈlabical adj

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

tet•ra•syl•la•ble

(ˈtɛ trəˌsɪl ə bəl, ˌtɛ trəˈsɪl-)

n.

a word or line of verse of four syllables.

[1580–90]

tet`ra•syl•lab′ic (-sɪˈlæb ɪk) adj.

References in periodicals archive ?

First, the kind of "writing" that looms largest for Saga is quite clearly shi poetry, though not the venerable tetrasyllable sort comprising Shijing [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII], but the far more recent penta- and heptasyllabic varieties preferred by post-Han poets.

Poetry and diplomacy in early Heian Japan: the embassy of Wang Hyoryom from Parhae to the Konin Court