prosody

n. [ L. prosodia the tone or accent of a syllable, Gr. &unr_; a song sung to, or with, an accompanying song, the accent accompanying the pronunciation; &unr_; to + &unr_; song, ode: cf. F. prosodie. See Ode. ] That part of grammar which treats of the quantity of syllables, of accent, and of the laws of versification or metrical composition. [ 1913 Webster ]