Home › Glossary › Letter S

Surplus verse

Concept
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

Poetry that exceeds conventional formal or thematic boundaries through excess or abundance

Detailed Definition
Surplus verse describes poetry that exceeds conventional boundaries in length, detail, or digression, embracing abundance over concision; often associated with Whitmanesque catalogs or postmodern maximalism, it uses excess to convey plenitude, democratic inclusivity, or the overwhelming complexity of contemporary experience.
Example
Example in poetry:
Walt Whitman’s catalogs extending beyond narrative need; Allen Ginsberg’s “Howl,” with overflowing lists; Contemporary poems using excessive detail for emotional or political effect; Poems that deliberately over-describe to critique consumerism or excess
Additional Notes
Surplus verse includes extra lines, stanzas, or digressions beyond formal requirements, often to amplify theme or disrupt expectation.
Also Known As
Excess verse Overflow stanza Additive poetry Extended form Line overflow Surplus pentameter
Skip to main content