enjambment

en·jamb·ment

or en·jambe·ment E0149900 (ĕn-jăm′mənt, -jămb′)n. The continuation of a syntactic unit from one line or couplet of a poem to the next with no pause.

[French enjambement, from Old French enjamber, to straddle : en-, causative pref.; see en-¹ + jambe, leg; see jamb.]

enjambment

(ɪnˈdʒæmmənt; French ɑ̃ʒɑ̃bmɑ̃) or

enjambement

n (Poetry) prosody the running over of a sentence from one line of verse into the next[C19: from French, literally: a straddling, from enjamber to straddle, from en-¹ + jambe leg; see jamb] enˈjambed adj

en•jamb•ment

or en•jambe•ment

(ɛnˈdʒæm mənt, -ˈdʒæmb-)

n., pl. -ments (-mənts). the running on of the thought from one poetic line, couplet, or stanza to the next without a syntactic break. [1830–40; < French enjambement <enjamb(er) to stride over, encroach] en•jambed′, adj.

Thesaurus

Noun

enjambment - the continuation of a syntactic unit from one line of verse into the next line without a pauseenjambementprosody, inflection - the patterns of stress and intonation in a language

Enjambment

in prosody, placement of the syntactic pause or stop at a position other than the rhythmic pause at the end of a line, hemistich, or stanza.

In classical verse there are three kinds of enjambment: rejet is the placement of the end of a clause or sentence at the beginning of the following line, contre-rejet the placement of the beginning of a sentence at the end of the preceding line, and double-rejet the placement of the beginning of a sentence at the end of one line and its conclusion at the start of the following line.

When enjambments are used sparingly, they give a strong intonational emphasis to the parts of the sentence severed by the line’s division. If they are numerous, they produce an intonation so close to that of prose that it almost obscures the verse rhythm; this is particularly true in dramatic verse. Classicism avoided enjambment; romanticism and some poetic schools of the 20th century cultivated it. An example of enjambment from modern poetry can be seen in the following lines of M. Tsvetaeva:

It matters not to me among which
People—I shall be bristling like a captive
Lion, or from what circle of people
I shall be excluded—inevitably …

REFERENCE

Shengeli, G. Tekhnika stikha. Moscow, 1960.

M. L. GASPAROV

enjambment

en·jamb·ment

enjambment

enjambement

en•jamb•ment

or en•jambe•ment

Enjambment

Enjambment

REFERENCE

enjambment

Synonyms for enjambment

noun the continuation of a syntactic unit from one line of verse into the next line without a pause

Synonyms

Related Words