FOOT, in the Latin and Greek poetry, a metre or measure, composed of a certain number of long and short syllables.
These feet are commonly reckoned 28: of which some are simple, as consisting of two or three syllables, and therefore called dissyllabic or trisyllabic feet; others are compound, consisting of four syllables, and are therefore called tetrasyllabic feet.
The dissyllabic feet are four in number, viz. the pyrrichius, spondeus, iambus, and trocheus. See PYRRICHUS, &c.
The trisyllabic feet are eight in number, viz. the dactylus, anapæstus, tribrachys, molossus, amphibrachys, amphimacer, bacchius, and antibacchius. See DACTYL, &c.
The tetrasyllabic are in number 16, viz. the proceleusmaticus, dispondeus, choriambus, antispastus, dambus, dichoreus, ionicus a majore, ionicus a minore, epitritus primus, epitritus secundus, epitritus tertius, epitritus
epitritus quartus, pæon primus, pæon secundus, pæon tertius, and pæon quartus. See PROCELEUSMATICUS, &c.
FOOT is also a long measure consisting of 12 inches. Geometricians divide the foot into 10 digits, and the digit into 10 lines.