enjambment

enjambment
enjambed, adj.
/en jam"meuhnt, -jamb"-/, n., pl. enjambments /-meuhnts/. Pros.
the running on of the thought from one line, couplet, or stanza to the next without a syntactical break.
[1830-40; < F enjambement, equiv. to enjamb(er) to stride over, project, encroach (en- EN-1 + -jamber, deriv. of jambe leg; see JAMB1) + -ment -MENT]

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poetry
also called  run-on 

      in prosody, the continuation of the sense of a phrase beyond the end of a line of verse. T.S. Eliot (Eliot, T.S.) used enjambment in the opening lines of his poem The Waste Land:

April is the cruelest month, breeding
Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing
Memory and desire, stirring
Dull roots with spring rain.
Winter kept us warm, covering
Earth in forgetful snow, feeding
A little life with dried tubers.

      Compare end stop.

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Enjambment — (also spelled enjambement) is the breaking of a syntactic unit (a phrase, clause, or sentence) by the end of a line or between two verses. It is to be contrasted with end stopping, where each linguistic unit corresponds with a single line, and… …   Wikipedia

  • enjambment — also enjambement, 1837, from Fr. enjambement or from enjamb (c.1600), from Fr. enjamber to stride over, from en (see EN (Cf. en ) (1)) + jambe leg (see JAMB (Cf. jamb)) …   Etymology dictionary

  • enjambment — or enjambement [en jam′mənt] n. [Fr enjambement < enjamber, to encroach < en (see EN 1) + jambe, leg: see JAMB] Prosody the use of a RUN ON line of verse: cf. END STOPPED …   English World dictionary

  • enjambment — also enjambement noun Etymology: French enjambement, from Middle French, encroachment, from enjamber to straddle, encroach on, from en + jambe leg more at jamb Date: circa 1839 the running over of a sentence from one verse or couplet into another …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • enjambment — noun /ɪnˈʤæmbmənt/ A technique in poetry whereby a sentence is carried over to the next line without pause. An instance of this …   Wiktionary

  • enjambment — n. continuation of a thought from one verse to another (Poetry) …   English contemporary dictionary

  • enjambment — en·jamb·ment …   English syllables

  • enjambment — en•jamb•ment or en•jambe•ment [[t]ɛnˈdʒæm mənt, ˈdʒæmb [/t]] n. pl. ments ( mənts). pro the running on of the thought from one poetic line, couplet, or stanza to the next without a syntactic break • Etymology: 1830–40; < F enjambement <… …   From formal English to slang

  • enjambment — /ɛnˈdʒæmmənt/ (say en jammuhnt), /ən / (say uhn ) noun the running on of the thought from one line or couplet to the next. Also, enjambement. {French enjambement, from enjamber stride over, project, from en en 1 + jambe leg} …  

  • enjambment — n. (also enjambement) Prosody the continuation of a sentence without a pause beyond the end of a line, couplet, or stanza. Etymology: F enjambement f. enjamber (as EN (1), jambe leg) …   Useful english dictionary

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