poem
Americannoun
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a composition in verse, especially one that is characterized by a highly developed artistic form and by the use of heightened language and rhythm to express an intensely imaginative interpretation of the subject.
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composition that, though not in verse, is characterized by great beauty of language or expression.
a prose poem from the Scriptures; a symphonic poem.
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something having qualities that are suggestive of or likened to those of poetry.
Marcel, that chicken cacciatore was an absolute poem.
noun
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a composition in verse, usually characterized by concentrated and heightened language in which words are chosen for their sound and suggestive power as well as for their sense, and using such techniques as metre, rhyme, and alliteration
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a literary composition that is not in verse but exhibits the intensity of imagination and language common to it
a prose poem
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anything resembling a poem in beauty, effect, etc
Etymology
Origin of poem
First recorded in 1540–50; from Latin poēma, from Greek poíēma “poem, something made,” from poiē- (variant stem of poieîn “to make”) + -ma, noun suffix
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Highlights include his drawing to accompany his narrative poem “Old Angel Midnight” and an unpublished story composed when he was a child.
This coincidence—the two men aren’t related—called to mind the poem “Cathedral Builders” by Welsh poet John Ormond and equal to the mystical moment.
Eliot’s poem “Burnt Norton”: “What might have been and what has been/Point to one end, which is always present.”
Two years after Elisha’s death, she wrote her love a poem, “Oh, that I could die and be with thee!”
From Literature
“I thought I was going daft. I thought I might end up wearing a teacup on my head and spouting limerick poems.”
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
