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En | es | ta | dis | pu | ta, Lle | gan | do | los | pe | rros, Pi | llan | des | cui | da | dos Á | mis | dos | co | ne | jos. |
In the syllabic division of words, a single consonant, or any group of consonants that may begin a word,[A] goes with the following vowel.
[A] These are bl, br, cl, cr, dr, fl, fr, gl, gr, pl, pr, and tr. Note also that ch, ll, ñ, and rr are considered single consonants. But a prepositional prefix, except before s+consonant, forms a separate syllable: des | a | gra | da | ble, in | a | ni | ma | do, but cons | tan | te.
The final vowel of one word, and the initial vowel of the next word in the same line, usually form one syllable:
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De | su | ma | dri | gue | ra Sa | lió^un | com | pa | ñe | ro, Y | le | di | jo:— | ¡Ten | te! A | mi | go, | ¿Qué^es | es | to? |
A verse-line contains one or more rhythmic stresses. By rhythmic stress is meant the more important metrical accent that falls (1) always upon the last accented syllable of a line, and (2) near the middle of a line of ten or more syllables. In the following line there are eight syllables and one rhythmic stress:
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Á | pe | sar | de | su | vi | ve | za. |
The following line has eleven syllables and two rhythmic stresses:
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ai | re | de^a | ro | mas, | flo | res | a | pi | ña | das. |
The strongly marked rhythmic beat of English and German verse occurs rarely in Spanish. The syllables of a verse-line should be read evenly, with the exception of a slight emphasis and rest upon the word that bears the rhythmic stress.