noun
- Plural of cesura; a pause or break in a line of verse, typically in the middle, marked by a natural pause in speech or meter.
Usage: literary/poetic term; also spelled 'caesurae' (Latin plural)
Examples
- The cesurae in Virgil's hexameter lines create natural resting points for the reader.
- Medieval poets often placed cesurae after the third or fourth foot to structure their verses.
- The skilled reciter observed the cesurae marked in the classical text.
- Cesurae help divide long lines into manageable rhythmic units.
- In analyzing the poem, the student identified several cesurae that emphasized key words.