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enjambment

[en-jam-muhnt, -jamb-]

Origin

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noun, plural en·jamb·ments

[-muhnts] . Prosody.

the running on of the thought from one line, couplet, or stanza to the next without a syntactical break.

Origin:
1830–40; < French enjambement, equivalent to enjamb(er) to stride over, project, encroach (en- en-¹ + -jamber, derivative of jambe leg; see jamb¹) + -ment -ment

Related forms

en·jambed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To enjambment

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Enjambment is always a great word to know.

So is lollapalooza. Does it mean:

an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance.

a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes.

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Collins

World English Dictionary

enjambment or enjambement (ɪnˈdʒæmmənt, French ɑ̃ʒɑ̃bmɑ̃, ɪnˈdʒæmmənt, French ɑ̃ʒɑ̃bmɑ̃)

—n
	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]

enjambement or enjambement

—n

[C19: from French, literally: a straddling, from enjamber to straddle, from en-¹ + jambe leg; see jamb]

en'jambed or enjambement

—*adj*

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

enjambment

1837, from enjamb (c.1600), from Fr. enjamber "to stride over," from jambe "leg."

Encyclopedia Britannica

Encyclopedia

enjambment

in prosody, the continuation of the sense of a phrase beyond the end of a line of verse. T.S. Eliot used enjambment in the opening lines of his poem The Waste Land:April is the cruelest month, breedingLilacs out of the dead land, mixingMemory and desire, stirringDull roots with spring rain.Winter kept us warm, coveringEarth in forgetful snow, feeding A little life with dried tubers

Learn more about enjambment with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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