prosody

Noun
US[pros-uh-dee]/ˈprɑsədi/3 syllables

Open English WordNet

Noun (3)

  1. the patterns of stress and intonation in a languageSynonyms: inflectionType of manner of speaking, speechKinds stress, intonation, rhythm, caesura, enjambment
  2. (prosody) a system of versificationSynonyms: poetic rhythmrhythmic patternType of versificationKinds meter, sprung rhythmPart of poem, verse form
  3. the study of poetic meter and the art of versificationSynonyms: metricsType of poetics
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Webster's Dictionary (1913)

Pros′o·dy noun

Origin: L. prosodia the tone or accent of a syllable, Gr. … a song sung to, or with, an accompanying song, the accent accompanying the pronunciation; … to + … song, ode: cf. F. prosodie. See Ode.

That part of grammar which treats of the quantity of syllables, of accent, and of the laws of versification or metrical composition.

Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), from GCIDE 0.54

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