Meanings
plural iambs
- human sciencesA metrical foot in verse consisting of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable.
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA metrical foot in verse consisting of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable.
More synonyms by meaning
nouna metrical unit with unstressed-stressed syllables
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Ancient Greekἴαμβος
- Latinïambus
- Frenchiambe
- Englishiamb
From French iambe in the mid-1800s, from Latin ïambus, from Ancient Greek ἴαμβος (íambos). Displaced iambus which shares the same classical origin.
More words from French, Latin, Ancient Greek
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek ἴαμβος
- ἴαμβος (íambos)a metrical foot
Bulgarian ямб
- ямб (jamb)a metrical foot
Catalan iambe
- iambea metrical foot
Chinese Mandarin 抑揚格 /抑扬格
- 抑揚格 /抑扬格 (yìyánggé)a metrical foot
Czech jamb
- jamba metrical foot
Danish jambe
- jambea metrical foot
Dutch jambe
- jambea metrical foot
Esperanto jambo
- jamboa metrical foot
Estonian jamb
- jamba metrical foot
Finnish jambi
- jambia metrical foot
French ïambe
- ïambea metrical foot
German Jambus
- Jambusa metrical foot
Hungarian jambus
- jambusa metrical foot
Irish iambus
- iambusa metrical foot
Italian giambo
- giamboa metrical foot
Japanese アイアンブ
- アイアンブ (aianbu)a metrical foot
Latin ïambus
- ïambusa metrical foot
Latvian jambs
- jambsa metrical foot
Lithuanian jámbas
- jámbasa metrical foot
Malay iambus
- iambusa metrical foot
Norwegian jambe
- jambea metrical foot
Polish jamb
- jamba metrical foot
Portuguese iambo
- iamboa metrical foot
Romanian iamb
- iamba metrical foot
Russian ямб
- ямб (jamb)a metrical foot
Slovak jamb
- jamba metrical foot
Spanish yambo
- yamboa metrical foot
Swedish jamb
- jamba metrical foot
Ukrainian ямб
- ямб (jamb)a metrical foot
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
iamb. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/iamb
“iamb.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/iamb. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “iamb,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/iamb.
Source: iamb on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.