Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The absence of one or more syllables in a line of verse, especially in the last foot.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun In prosody, incompleteness of the last foot or measure of a verse; in a wider sense, incompleteness of any foot in a verse.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A shortened or incomplete last foot at the end of a verse.
  • noun Truncation at the close of a line of poetry by omission of one or two final syllables.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun the absence of a syllable in the last foot of a line or verse

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Greek katalēxis, from katalēgein, to leave off; see catalectic.]

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Examples

  • Nearly all English metres owe their existence as metres to "catalexis," or pause, for the time of one or more feet, and, as

    The Unknown Eros Coventry Kersey Dighton Patmore 1859

  • Getting the vapors over a critic screaming his outrage in full-throated disgust at the abandonment of humane ideals is to play the courtly stooge in a manner most unbecoming an honest mind. — catalexis

    Easing Off Online Obscenities - The Caucus Blog - NYTimes.com 2008

  • What does that say about the prospects for assimilation of newcomers from Mexico? catalexis Says:

    Matthew Yglesias » The Land of Many Kims 2007

  • * With apologies to catalexis, I took the liberty of substituting a Baby Sinclair picture that I think more closely captures the batshit craziness of Huggy Bear.

    Caption Contest Sinfonian 2008

  • Report this comment to the moderators catalexis Writes:

    And a bit more on real manhood 2004

  • For information on the generally overlooked but primarily important function of catalexis in English verse I refer such readers as may be curious about the subject to the Essay printed as an appendix to the later editions of my collected poems.

    The Unknown Eros Coventry Kersey Dighton Patmore 1859

  • _̷ ◡ ◡ _̷ ◡ _̷ ◡ _̷ ◡ _̷ that is, 5-stress trochaic, with dactylic substitution in the first foot and truncation or catalexis of the last foot in the second and fourth lines; or perhaps iambic, with anapestic substitution in the second foot and a feminine ending in the first and third lines.

    The Principles of English Versification Paull Franklin Baum

  • a rule, the position and amount of catalexis are fixed.

    The Unknown Eros Coventry Kersey Dighton Patmore 1859

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