Definition of "enjambment" [enjambment]

• The continuation of a syntactic unit from one line or couplet of a poem to the next with no pause. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Both poems are written in free verse and make ready use of what is called enjambment, that is, the abrupt continuation of a sentence from one line into the next."
• "With its misty sentiment and odd word enjambment, that first lyric casts its shadow across all 44 minutes of the record."
• "It reminded me of the concept in poetry of "enjambment" where the implied silence at the ends of lines can be crafted to carry meanings that nuance, augment, or contradict readings that obey the conventions of punctuation."