Metre
The recurring pattern of strong and weak beats that organises music into regular groups.
Category
rhythm
Pronunciation
/ˈmiːtə/
Origin
Greek (metron, measure)
Length
189 words · 1 min read
About Metre
Metre (spelled "meter" in American English) is the underlying rhythmic framework that groups beats into bars. Simple metres divide each beat into two equal parts (duple subdivision), whilst compound metres divide each beat into three.
More rhythm terms
Compound time
View all rhythmterms →Time signatures in which each beat subdivides naturally into three equal parts.
QuaverA note lasting half a beat in common time, equivalent to an eighth note in American terminology.
BarA segment of music bounded by bar lines, containing a fixed number of beats
HemiolaA rhythmic device in which two bars of triple time are made to sound like three bars of duple time, or vice versa.
SyncopationDeliberate displacement of the expected rhythmic accent
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v1 · 10/04/2026Browse all terms →