Home › Glossary › Letter T

Trailing off

Structure
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 poetic line or phrase that fades away rather than reaching a definitive close

Detailed Definition
Trailing off is a syntactic or rhythmic fade at a line or stanza’s end—using ellipsis, weak stress, or diminishing diction—to convey uncertainty, exhaustion, or unresolved thought; this technique mimics speech patterns of hesitation or emotional withdrawal, as in confessional poetry where the speaker’s voice dissolves into silence rather than conclusion.
Example
Example in poetry:
“I meant to say... never mind.” — sentence fades without resolution; “Perhaps if I had... oh, it’s gone now.” — thought abandoned mid-expression; “She was like the... no, forget it.” — emotional trailing off; “And then the sky — well, you had to be there.” — narrative dissolution
Additional Notes
Trailing off|A technique, often indicated by an ellipsis (…), where a thought, sentence, or speech fragment is left unfinished, suggesting reluctance, deep emotion, or a breakdown in communication; it allows the reader to fill in the unspoken gap.
Also Known As
Fade-out Trailing line Drifting closure Aposiopesis aposiopetic phrase
Skip to main content