METRE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does metre mean? 

• METRE (noun)
  The noun METRE has 3 senses:

1. the basic unit of length adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites (approximately 1.094 yards)

2. (prosody) the accent in a metrical foot of verse

3. rhythm as given by division into parts of equal duration

  Familiarity information: METRE used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• METRE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The basic unit of length adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites (approximately 1.094 yards)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting quantities and units of measure

Synonyms:

m; meter; metre

Hypernyms ("metre" is a kind of...):

metric linear unit (a linear unit of distance in metric terms)

Meronyms (parts of "metre"):

decimeter; decimetre; dm (a metric unit of length equal to one tenth of a meter)

Holonyms ("metre" is a part of...):

dam; decameter; decametre; dekameter; dekametre; dkm (a metric unit of length equal to ten meters)

Derivation:

metrical (based on the meter as a standard of measurement)

Domain region:

Britain (a monarchy in northwestern Europe occupying most of the British Isles; divided into England and Scotland and Wales and Northern Ireland; 'Great Britain' is often used loosely to refer to the United Kingdom)

Canada (a nation in northern North America; the French were the first Europeans to settle in mainland Canada)

Sense 2

Meaning:

(prosody) the accent in a metrical foot of verse

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

beat; cadence; measure; meter; metre

Hypernyms ("metre" is a kind of...):

poetic rhythm; prosody; rhythmic pattern ((prosody) a system of versification)

Domain category:

metrics; prosody (the study of poetic meter and the art of versification)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "metre"):

catalexis (the absence of a syllable in the last foot of a line or verse)

scansion (analysis of verse into metrical patterns)

common measure; common meter (the usual (iambic) meter of a ballad)

foot; metrical foot; metrical unit ((prosody) a group of 2 or 3 syllables forming the basic unit of poetic rhythm)

Derivation:

metrical (the rhythmic arrangement of syllables)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Rhythm as given by division into parts of equal duration

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

meter; metre; time

Hypernyms ("metre" is a kind of...):

rhythmicity (the rhythmic property imparted by the accents and relative durations of notes in a piece of music)

Derivation:

metric (the rhythmic arrangement of syllables)

Domain region:

Britain (a monarchy in northwestern Europe occupying most of the British Isles; divided into England and Scotland and Wales and Northern Ireland; 'Great Britain' is often used loosely to refer to the United Kingdom)

Canada (a nation in northern North America; the French were the first Europeans to settle in mainland Canada)

 Context examples 

New research has discovered the tallest known tree in the Amazon, towering above the previous record holder at a height of 88.5 metres.

(Expedition finds tallest tree in the Amazon, University of Cambridge)

Although the interactions between ice and ocean occurring hundreds of metres below the surface of ice shelves seem remote, they have a direct impact on long-term sea level.

(Rapid melting of the world’s largest ice shelf linked to solar heat in the ocean, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

The measures I have are 1 volt/metre in maximum radiation.

(Health threats caused by mobile phone radiation, EUROPARL TV)

They concluded that the penitentes could potentially grow to around 15 metres tall with a spacing of around 7.5 metres between each one.

(Icy Warning for Space Missions to Jupiter's Moon, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

They slow down if needed to hunt, and can maintain high speeds for hundred of metres.

(Around 7,100 cheetahs remain, say experts, Wikinews)

It is estimated to be at least 400 metres long.

(ESO Observations Show First Interstellar Asteroid is Like Nothing Seen Before, ESO)

Though fossil waters—common in wells deeper than 250 metres—are found in major aquifers, their global extent and depth are not clearly understood.

(Modern pollutants can reach deep fossil aquifers, SciDev.Net)

The whale shark can grow to eighteen metres (60 ft) in length.

(New study of endangered whale shark youth shows vital habitat similarities, Wikinews)

Most of the Antarctic continent is covered by the Antarctic Ice Sheet, which is up to four kilometres thick and contains enough ice to raise global sea levels by about 58 metres.

(Surface lakes cause Antarctic ice shelves to ‘flex’, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

The metre marched along on perfect feet, and the rhyme pounded a longer and equally faultless rhythm, but the glow and high exaltation that he felt within were lacking.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)