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And-sign break

Sound
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A line break or pause represented by the use of “&” in poetry.

Detailed Definition
And-sign break refers to line breaks that occur immediately before or after an ampersand (&), creating a pause that emphasizes the conjunction while producing visual distinctiveness through the symbol's presence. This breaking pattern can highlight connections being made, create suspense about what follows, or generate rhythm through the interaction of lineation and typography. The ampersand's visual weight adds significance to the break beyond what "and" alone would provide.
Example
Example in poetry:
And-sign break uses “&” or “and” to fracture syntax or create emphasis: E.E. Cummings writes “i carry your heart(i carry it in / my heart)” using ampersand-like fusion; Whitman’s catalogs often hinge on “and” as rhythmic pivot (“I celebrate myself, and sing myself”); Gwendolyn Brooks uses “&” in “We Real Cool” for jazz-inflected syncopation; contemporary poets like Claudia Rankine insert “and” to disrupt narrative flow in “Citizen”; Renaissance sonnets (e.g., Sidney) use “and” to pivot volta.
Additional Notes
And-sign break is a descriptive term for a poetic line break or caesura that occurs immediately after the word "and" (or the & symbol), forcing the reader to pause on the conjunction and creating an expectant, transitional rhythm.
Also Known As
Symbolic and-break “Et” pause Typographic break Ampersand caesura
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