dactyl

noun4

1. •
   A metrical foot of three syllables of the shape | – ⏖ |

   • —My name is absurd too: Malachi Mulligan, two dactyls. But it has a Hellenic ring, hasn't it? — 1922
2. •
   In qualitative metre, a foot with a stressed first syllable followed by two unstressed syllables.
3. •
   In quantitative metre, a foot with a long first syllable followed by two short syllables.
4. •
   An excerpt of poetry or verse using this metre.