Sinalefa

A sinalefa is a figure of transformation that consists of pronouncing with a single blow of air the last syllable of a word that ends in unstressed vowels and the first of the following, if it begins with a vowel. unaccented The RAE defines it as a union in a single syllable of two or more continuous vowels belonging to different words. It is taken into account for the elaboration of the meter in texts written in verse.

For example: the verse "the men of old..." is pronounced aloud as follows:

/ hom / bres / dean / ta / ño.

If the sinalefa were not taken into account, seven syllables could be counted quietly. However, in reality it is a hexasyllabic verse, that is, it has six syllables.

The verse "of pure honesty sacred temple" would be pronounced like this:

«de / pu / raho / nes / you / give / tem / plo / sa / gra / do».

It is a hendecasyllabic verse, that is, with eleven syllables, although twelve syllables can be counted quietly.

The sinalefa is used to give more naturalness to the pronunciation of a verse. It can also be used as poetic license, to adjust the verse to the required meter. If a poem is read aloud with a regular meter, the ear becomes accustomed to the rhythm of the text, and the reader makes the synalephas naturally, without realizing it.