metre

metre — noun

1. a unit used for measuring how long something is, equal to 100 centimetres (about

1.名詞A1
釋義

a unit used for measuring how long something is, equal to 100 centimetres (about 1.1 yards).

例句

The swimming pool at the local leisure centre is twenty-five metres long.

collocation: [number] + metres + long/wide/deep

Romi bought two metres of blue fabric from the market stall.

同義詞
  • unit

    much more general; metre is a specific type of unit

  • yard

    imperial unit close in length (0.91 m), used mainly in the US and UK for certain contexts

文法句型

[number] + metre(s) + long/wide/deep/high

[number] + metre(s) + of + [noun]

用法筆記

In British English the spelling 'metre' is used for the unit of length; 'meter' (same pronunciation) refers to a measuring device such as a gas meter or parking meter. American English uses 'meter' for both.

常見錯誤

❌The table is 2 meter wide.
✅The table is 2 metres wide.
💡Metre is a countable noun; add -s in the plural after numbers greater than one.
❌The gas metre shows how much energy we used.
✅The gas meter shows how much energy we used.
💡A 'meter' is a device that reads a quantity; 'metre' is a unit of length.

2. the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables arranged in regular groups with

2.名詞B2
釋義

the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables arranged in regular groups within a line of poetry, creating a steady rhythm.

例句

Shanti studied the metre of Shakespeare's sonnets in her English literature class.

the metre of + [text]

Traditional Chinese poetry follows strict rules of metre and rhyme.

strict rules of metre and rhyme

同義詞
  • rhythm

    broader term; metre is the structured, measurable form of rhythm in poetry

  • beat

    informal, used for the underlying pulse; less precise than metre

  • verse form

    includes metre plus other structural features like line length and rhyme scheme

反義詞
  • prose

    written language without metrical structure

文法句型

the metre of + [text]

[adjective] + metre

in + [adjective] + metre

用法筆記

Frequently used with adjectives that name a specific pattern (iambic metre, trochaic metre). When referring to the concept in general, metre is uncountable ('this poem lacks metre'). A particular instance is countable ('Latin poets used several metres').

常見錯誤

❌The poet wrote in a strict meter.
✅The poet wrote in a strict metre.
💡In British English, the poetic sense is always spelled 'metre', not 'meter'.
❌Rhyme and meter are both important.
✅Rhyme and metre are both important.
💡Same spelling rule applies.

3. the way beats are grouped into regular units called bars within a musical work,

3.名詞B2
釋義

the way beats are grouped into regular units called bars within a musical work, usually shown by a time signature at the start of each bar.

例句

The conductor explained how the metre changes from 4/4 time to 3/4 time.

metre changes from [time signature] to [time signature]

Jin tapped his foot to keep the metre while practising the piano piece.

keep the metre

同義詞
  • time

    interchangeable in music (e.g. '3/4 time' = '3/4 metre'); time is more common in everyday music talk

  • beat

    a single pulse; metre is the larger organising structure that groups beats

  • rhythm

    broader term that includes metre but also note lengths and accent patterns

文法句型

[time signature] + metre

in + [time signature] + metre

the metre of + [piece]

用法筆記

Musical metre is usually described by its time signature (2/4, 3/4, 4/4, 6/8). Duple metre has two beats per bar, triple metre has three, and quadruple metre has four. The plural 'metres' can refer to different types of metre within a single composition.

常見錯誤

❌This waltz has a 3/4 meter.
✅This waltz has a 3/4 metre.
💡British spelling 'metre' applies to the musical sense as well.