| E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898. |
| | | Spenserian Metre (The). | | |
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The metre in which Spenser’s Faërie Queene is written. It is a stanza of nine iambic lines, all of ten syllables except the last, which is an Alexandrine. Only three different rhymes are admitted into a stanza, and these rhymes are thus disposed: Lines 1 and 3 rhyme; lines 2, 4, 5, 7 rhyme; lines 6, 8, 9 rhyme; thus:— | 1 |
| 1 | ride |
| 2 | low |
| 3 | side |
| 4 | throw |
| 5 | snow |
| 6 | had |
| 7 | blow |
| 8 | lad |
| 9 | sad (an alexandrine). |
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