Which form of poetry is commonly written in iambic pentameter and often appears as a 14-line work?

• A. Haiku
• B. Limerick
• C. Sonnet
• D. Autobiography

Answer: (C)

The form described is a sonnet. It centers on two features: the meter and the length. Iambic pentameter means each line typically has five iambs, a pattern of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed one, giving that steady da-DUM rhythm and usually about ten syllables per line. A fourteen-line poem is the standard length for a sonnet, a format that has classic variants like the Shakespearean and Petrarchan styles. This combination—iambic pentameter and fourteen lines—identifies a sonnet. Haiku uses a 5-7-5 syllable pattern across three lines; a limerick is five lines with a distinctive AABBA rhyme and a playful rhythm; autobiography is prose, not poetry.