Glossary of Poetic Terms

A form of light verse invented and promoted by Paul Pascal, Anthony Hecht, and John Hollander. The double dactyl consists of two quatrains, each with three double-dactyl lines followed by a shorter dactyl-spondee pair. The two spondees rhyme. Additionally, the first line must be a nonsense phrase, the second line a proper or place name, and one other line, usually the sixth, a single double-dactylic word that has never been used before in any other double dactyl. For example:
         
          Higgledy piggledy,
          Bacon, lord Chancellor.
          Negligent, fell for the
          Paltrier vice.

          Bribery toppled him,
          Bronchopneumonia
          Finished him, testing some
          Poultry on ice.
                             (by Ian Lancashire)