Okuzeka
Literature vocabulary · Poetry

Enjambment

Meaning in literature, with examples

nounCommon term

In literature, enjambment means: The continuation of a phrase or sentence beyond a verse line without a full pause.

In Turkish: dize aşımı, anjambman

How it is used

Use when syntax crosses a line ending; consider the expectation created before the next line arrives.

Example sentences

  1. The enjambment delays the object of the verb until the next line.

    The reader briefly waits to learn what the action affects.

  2. Her translation removes the enjambment and makes the anxious passage sound too settled.

    A new pause changes the movement and emotional effect of the passage.

Common collocations

  • use enjambment
  • enjambment between lines
  • verseWriting arranged in lines with a rhythm, as opposed to prose; also a single line of a poem or a group of lines in a song.
  • rhythmThe pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables, pauses and speed in a line of poetry or prose, which gives it a sense of movement.

More terms: Poetry

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