Cretics

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A metrical foot in poetry consisting of three syllables with a pattern of stressed, unstressed, then stressed; a measure used to create rhythmic variation in verse; and alternatively, a term referring to critics or judges in various contexts
2. A rhythmic unit in verse made up of three syllables arranged as strong-weak-strong; a poetic beat employed for emphasis and cadence; also denotes individuals who evaluate or critique works or performances
3. A triple-syllable metrical foot marked by a stress-unstress-stress sequence; a structural element in poetic meter to affect tempo and emphasis; and figuratively, a person serving as an evaluator or judge in artistic or literary matters

Etymology: The plural form "cretics" is simply the plural of "cretic", a noun for a three-syllable metrical foot in Greek and Latin verse, with one long syllable at each end and a short one in the middle. The name is an adjective turned noun. It comes from Latin "creticus", meaning "of Crete" or "Cretan", built on "Creta", the Latin name for the island. The link to the island is an old one in classical scholarship, which is why a poetic measure carries a geographical name. Ancient writers described the foot by its shape, and the Cretan label stuck to it as a classification term, much as an everyday object can be named after a place it came from. Because "cretic" was borrowed into English as a technical term, it has stayed almost entirely within the study of prosody, the analysis of verse rhythm. Its meaning has not shifted: it still names the same long-short-long pattern that Latin and Greek poets used.

Synonyms: metrical feet, trochees