Connective term

Device
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

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 word or phrase that links ideas, images, or stanzas to create cohesion

Detailed Definition
A connective term is a word or phrase—such as “and,” “yet,” “therefore,” or “meanwhile”—that links ideas, images, or stanzas within a poem, guiding the reader through shifts in thought, time, or perspective; its strategic use shapes the poem’s logical flow, emotional pacing, and syntactic architecture.
Example
Example in poetry:
Words like “thus,” “therefore,” and “consequently” serve as connective terms linking poetic ideas logically; in Milton’s “Paradise Lost,” “so” often bridges divine action and human consequence; Dickinson uses dashes as implicit connective terms between fragmented thoughts; Auden’s “In Memory of W.B. Yeats” uses “for” to connect elegiac reflection with social commentary.
Additional Notes
A connective term is a word or phrase (e.g., “but,” “thus,” “yet”) that links ideas across lines or stanzas; crucial for coherence in mosaic composition or layered imagery.
Also Known As
Linking word transitional phrase bridging term connective tissue copulative word
Skip to main content