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exhalation-based line

Meter
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 metrical line calibrated to the natural duration of a single, comfortable exhalation, aligning breath with poetic phrasing and rhythm.

Detailed Definition
An exhalation-based line is composed to be read in a single breath, using enjambment, caesura, or syllabic count to mirror respiratory patterns; this approach grounds poetry in the physical act of speaking, fostering immediacy and emotional authenticity through alignment with the body’s natural rhythms.
Example
Example in poetry:
A line structured by breath length, such as in Charles Olson’s projective verse where “form is never more than an extension of content” and lines are shaped by inhalation and exhalation
Additional Notes
A line of verse where the length and structure are determined by the natural limits of the speaker's breath, aiming for a spontaneous, organic rhythm; key to the theory of projective verse (Charles Olson).
Also Known As
Breath-line Outbreath verse Respiratory line
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