sestet
[se-
stet
,
ses
-tet]
/sɛˈstɛt, ˈsɛs tɛt/
noun
1.
Prosody.
the last six lines of a sonnet in the Italian form, considered as a unit.
Compare
octave
(def 4a).
2.
sextet
(def 2).
Origin
1795-1805;
<
Italian
sestetto
sextet
, equivalent to
sest
(
o
) (<
Latin
sextus
sixth
) +
-etto
-et
British Dictionary definitions for
sestet
sestet
/
sɛˈstɛt
/
noun
1.
(
prosody
) the last six lines of a Petrarchan sonnet
2.
(
prosody
) any six-line stanza
3.
another word for
sextet
(sense 1)
Word Origin
C19: from Italian
sestetto,
from
sesto
sixth, from Latin
sextus,
from
sex
six
Word Origin and History for
sestet
n.
1801, from Italian
sestetto
, diminutive of
sesto
"sixth," from Latin
sextus
(see
Sextus
).