hypercatalectic, a. Pros.
(-kætəˈlɛktɪk)
[ad. late L. hypercatalēctic-us (Gr. ὑπερκατάληκτος is recorded); see hyper- 1 and catalectic.]
Of a verse or colon: Having an extra syllable after the last complete dipody. Also applied to the syllable itself. † Formerly also = hypermetric.
Used occas. of Old English verse.
| 1704 J. Harris Lex. Techn. s.v. Deposition, Hypercatalectick, where a Syllable or two are Redundant. 1752 Newton Milton, Mask 631 Such redundant or hyper⁓catalectick verses sometimes occur in Milton. 1813 J. J. Conybeare in Archæologia (1814) XVII. 265 Of the Trochaic species, with the Hypercatalectic syllable, as, Ahte ic, ealdor, stol. 1886 J. B. Mayor Eng. Metre i. 10 To state whether it is metrically complete, or incomplete, owing to final or initial truncation, or more than complete..in technical language, whether it is acatalectic, catalectic or hypercatalectic. 1894 Trans. Philol. Soc. 1891–4 386 Expanded lines, called by German scholars Schwell⁓verse or Streck-verse, are hypercatalectic. |