Home › Glossary › Letter R

Run-on couplet

Form
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 rhymed two-line unit where the sense continues past the couplet without pause (enjambment)

Detailed Definition
Run-on couplet is a pair of rhymed lines in which the syntactic unit continues beyond the second line into the next couplet, defying the expected closure of heroic couplets; this technique, used by Milton and later Romantics, creates fluidity and suspense, resisting epigrammatic neatness in favor of expansive thought.
Example
Example in poetry:
A pair of successive rhyming lines (couplet) where the thought, phrase, or sentence continues without a pause past the end of the first line and onto the second, requiring enjambment.; "The ocean waves / Rolled smoothly to the shore," where the thought of the sentence clearly flows over the line break.; The end of the first line of the couplet does not coincide with a grammatical pause, forcing the reader to move quickly to the second line.; A couplet in iambic pentameter where the syntax is not complete until the end of the second line, contrasting with the closed couplet.
Additional Notes
Run-on couplet is a two-line unit (couplet) where the first line flows seamlessly into the second without a terminal punctuation mark or major pause, an example of enjambment applied to the couplet.
Also Known As
Couplet enjambment run-on pair flowing couplet Couplet, open Enjambed couplet Enjambed pair
Skip to main content