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Tenon

Craft Terms
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 tenon is a projecting poetic element designed to fit into a prepared opening elsewhere in the poem.

Detailed Definition
A tenon is a line, image, phrase, or sonic echo that extends beyond its immediate passage and locks into a later structural or thematic opening. An image introduced casually in the first stanza may become the precise answer to a question near the end. The connection can be explicit or delayed, and its pleasure comes from recognition without complete explanation. Tenons help a long poem feel joined, giving distant parts a tactile relation.
Example
Example in poetry:
A tenon is a projecting element that fits into a receiving space, and a vivid image can serve as a tenon joining two stanzas; A repeated phrase may project from one section into the next, giving the sequence a tenon of sound and sense; In a love poem, the image of a lit window can be a tenon that connects the speaker’s loneliness to another person’s presence; A strong concluding line can act as a tenon when it locks the poem’s earlier images into a new meaning
Additional Notes
A tenon is the element that projects into a prepared opening elsewhere in the poem. It might be a repeated phrase that completes an earlier question, an image that returns with altered meaning, or a concluding line that locks a sequence into place. A strong tenon creates connection without eliminating surprise. Look for correspondence in sound, syntax, image, or theme, especially across separated stanzas.
Also Known As
Mortise-and-Tenon Wooden Joint Joinery Peg Projecting Joint
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