clerihew

[ kler-uh-hyoo ]

nounProsody.
  1. a light verse form, usually consisting of two couplets, with lines of uneven length and irregular meter, the first line usually containing the name of a well-known person.

Origin of clerihew

1
1925–30; named after E. Clerihew Bentley (1875–1956), English writer, its inventor

Words Nearby clerihew

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use clerihew in a sentence

  • "I shall be happy for one," said Mrs. clerihew, laying stress on the aspirate.

    Brother Copas | Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch
  • "Two gills to the coffin-room, Mrs. clerihew," he cried to the woman in the kitchen.

  • "Convictions are well enough when you can afford 'em," Brother clerihew grunted again.

    Brother Copas | Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch
  • The three kept sentry, knowing that clerihew must sooner or later return with his convoy, there being no other exit.

    Brother Copas | Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch
  • The quarrel had started in the forenoon over a dirty trick played by Brother clerihew, the ex-butler.

    Brother Copas | Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch

British Dictionary definitions for clerihew

clerihew

/ (ˈklɛrɪˌhjuː) /


noun
  1. a form of comic or satiric verse, consisting of two couplets of metrically irregular lines, containing the name of a well-known person

Origin of clerihew

1
C20: named after Edmund Clerihew Bentley, who invented it

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012