What does tercet mean?
A tercet is a group of three lines of verse. It may form a complete stanza, but the term is especially associated with terza rima, an Italian verse form in which tercets are linked through an interlocking rhyme scheme: the third line of one tercet rhymes with the first line of the next. A tercet does not require all three of its lines to rhyme together, and its lines are not necessarily equal in length or grammatical form. In general discussion, “tercet” is a precise alternative to the broader word “triplet” when referring to verse. Recognizing it helps readers understand how poets organize lines into meaningful units and how those units interact across a poem. Although it is primarily a literary and scholarly term, it is fully established in ordinary English and can be used whenever a three-line verse unit is being identified or analyzed.
nounA tercet is a group of three lines of verse, especially a three-line unit within a poem using terza rima.
- A group of three lines of verse, especially a unit within a poem using terza rima.
"The poet closed each tercet with a half-rhyme that drew the reader onward."
"He arranged the sequence in four tercets, each turning the argument in a new direction."
"The manuscript consists of six tercets followed by a final quatrain."
The standard plural is formed by adding -s.
"The poem's closing tercets echo themes introduced in its opening lines."
Three lines walk into a poem: in terza rima, each tercet's third line helps rhyme the next tercet's opening line.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does tercet come from?
The word was borrowed from Italian terzetto, meaning a group of three and derived as a diminutive of terzo, “third,” which comes from Latin tertius, “third.” English use of the term developed in the nineteenth century, particularly in discussions of Italian poetic forms. Its relatives include terza rima and the English word “third,” all reflecting the same tradition of counting by threes.
Related word forms
How tercet is actually used
Chiefly literary and somewhat specialized, this term has no evaluative connotation but is encountered mainly in discussions of poetic form and technique.
Easily confused with tercet
A triplet can refer to any group or arrangement of three, especially three musical notes played in the time normally occupied by two, whereas a tercet is specifically a unit of three lines of verse.