A metrical foot used in poetry consisting of three syllables where two short syllables are followed by one long syllable (in classical poetry) or two unstressed syllables followed by one stressed syllable (in English).
From Greek 'anapaistos' (reversed paeon), from 'ana-' (back, reversed) + 'paian' (paean, a song of praise). Named because it reverses the paeon foot pattern.
The anapaest creates a galloping rhythm—'da-da-DUM, da-da-DUM'—which is why it appears in nursery rhymes like 'The night before Christmas' and gives verse a bouncy, energetic feel!
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