arsis

1 of 4

noun (1)

ar·​sis ˈär-səs 

plural arses ˈär-ˌsēz 

1

a

: the lighter or shorter part of a poetic foot especially in quantitative verse

b

: the accented or longer part of a poetic foot especially in accentual verse

2

: the unaccented part of a musical measure compare thesis

ass

2 of 4

noun (2)

ˈas 

1

: any of several hardy gregarious (see gregarious sense 1b) African or Asian perissodactyl mammals (genus Equus) smaller than the horse and having long ears

especially : an African mammal (E. africanus) that is the ancestor of the donkey

2

informal + impolite : a stupid, stubborn, or detestable person

a pompous ass

made an ass of himself

He was an ass to her, dissing her script (which he apparently lost), telling her women couldn't be artists and that she looked so much prettier with makeup on.

—Lauren Piester

—often compounded with a preceding adjective

Don't be a smart-ass.

ass

3 of 4

noun (3)

ˈas 

variants or arse

ˈas, 

ˈärs 

plural asses or arses

1

a

informal + impolite : buttocks

—often used in emphatic reference to a specific person

Get your ass over here.

saved my ass

see also my ass

b

informal + impolite : anus

2

offensive : sexual intercourse

ass

4 of 4

adverb

informal + impolite

—used as a postpositive intensive especially with words of derogatory implication

fancy-ass

Synonyms of arsis

Noun (2)

• donkey

Examples of arsis in a Sentence

Noun (2)

the farm kept a few asses for hauling hay in and out of the field

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

When my fellow guest would leave us at lunch, Great Bear sent out the bad-ass female snowboarders on the lodge staff to join. — Jen Murphy, Travel + Leisure, 20 July 2026

Every drop hits like a quake, and each muscular beat compels you to shake your ass. — Kiana Mickles, Pitchfork, 17 July 2026

Bianca, if there’s a psychological thriller or some dark, weird-ass movie coming out, Bianca’s the first one to watch it. — Matthew Carey, Deadline, 15 July 2026

Something, oh, like a roly-poly, 73-year-old manager tumbling ass over teakettle, as the old-timers say, when a bat thrown by Vladimir Guerrero clipped his left hip. — Tyler Kepner, New York Times, 13 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English, "raising of the voice," borrowed from Latin, "raising of the voice on an emphatic syllable," borrowed from Greek ársis "lifting, raising, raising of the foot to mark an unstressed beat (in music and prosody, opposed to thésis thesis), from ar- (contracted from *awer-), base of aeírein "to lift, raise" (also, "to join, attach, harness") + -sis -sis — more at aorta

Noun (2)

Middle English, from Old English assa, probably from Old Irish asan, from Latin asinus

Noun (3)

Middle English ars, ers, from Old English ærs, ears; akin to Old High German & Old Norse ars buttocks, Greek orrhos buttocks, oura tail

Adverb

ass entry 2

First Known Use

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun (2)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (3)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Adverb

circa 1920, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for arsis

• parsis
• catharsis
• metatarsus