The most common symbols used to scan a poem are:

• Wand : A wand—represented as “/”—is placed over a strong syllable.


• Cup : A cup—represented as “u”—is placed over a weak or unstressed syllable.


• Foot boundary : A boundary mark—represented as “I”—separates the feet in a line of verse.


• Caesura : A break in speech, either between feet or phrases, is

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There are many types of feet in poetry, including trochee, iamb, spondee, dactyl, and anapest, all of which have a different combination of stressed and unstressed syllables.