Meter & Rhythm
Catalexis
From Greek katalegein: to leave off. Common in trochaic verse; the feminine ending is a form of hypercatalexis (one syllable added).
Definition
The omission of one or more unstressed syllables at the end of a line, making it metrically incomplete.
Example
A catalectic iambic tetrameter ends with a stressed syllable only: 7 syllables instead of 8.