What's iambic pentameter?

Answer 1

Iambic pentameter is a poetic form consisting of five (penta) iambs which are a pair of syllables, the first being unstressed, the second being stressed. An example in (formerly) common use would be:

I WISH I WERE an OScar MEYer WIEN-
er, THAT is WHAT I TRUly WANT to BE,
For IF I WERE an OScar MEYer WIEN-
er, EV'ry ONE would BE in LOVE with ME.

Answer 2

Here's what Wiki says:

Iambic pentameter is a meter in poetry. It refers to a line consisting of five iambic feet. The word "pentameter" simply means that there are five feet in the line; iambic pentameter is a line comprising five iambs. The term originally applied to the quantitative meter of Classical Greek poetry, in which an iamb consisted of a short syllable followed by a long syllable. The term was adopted to describe the equivalent meter in English accentual-syllabic verse, where an iamb refers to an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable. Iambic rhythms come relatively naturally in English. Iambic pentameter is among the most common metrical forms in English poetry: it is used in many of the major English poetic forms, including blank verse, the heroic couplet, and some of the traditional rhymed stanza forms, such as the Shakespearean sonnet.

Answer 3

Iambic pentameter: one unstressed syllable followed by one stressed syllable for five feet

Answer 4

its used in shakespeare and other poetry. it is a rythym of spoken word where 5 words or syllables are accented.

Answer 5

Five accented syllables, and 5 unaccented ones.
De dum de dum de dum de dum de dum
De dum de dum de dum de dum de dum.

Where dum is accented and de is not.