The Bedford Glossary of Critical and Literary Terms - Ross Murfin 2018

Heptameter (septenary)

Heptameter (septenary): A line of verse consisting of seven metrical feet.

EXAMPLE: The following lines from Rudyard Kipling’s “Tommy” (1890) are fourteeners written in iambic heptameter:

Ĭ wént│ı̇̆ntó│ă púb│lı̇̆c-’óuse│tŏ gét│ă pі́nt│ŏ’ béer,│

The pub│lican│’e up│an’ sez,│“We serve│no red│-coats here.”│

The girls│be’ind│the bar│they laughed│an’ gig│gled fit│to die, │

I outs│into│the street│again│an’ to│myself│sez I… . │