Synonyms

free verse

American

[free vurs] / ˈfri ˈvɜrs /

noun

Prosody.

verse that does not follow a fixed metrical pattern.

free verse British

noun

unrhymed verse without a metrical pattern

"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

free verse Cultural

Verse without regular meter or rhyme. Leaves of Grass, by Walt Whitman, is written almost entirely in free verse.

Other Word Forms

free-versifier

noun

Etymology

Origin of free verse

First recorded in 1905–10

Compare meaning

How does free-verse compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

blank verse vs. free verse

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.

Free verse and bizarre modern forms get short shrift from Rhymster Braley.

From Time Magazine Archive

Free verse is what her language arts teacher called it.

From "Ivy Aberdeen’s Letter to the World" by Ashley Herring Blake

Free verse may have great poetic value even though it lacks a unique cadence.

From The Literature of Ecstasy by Mordell, Albert

Free verse that is free verse is not arbitrary.

From Colors of Life Poems and Songs and Sonnets by Eastman, Max

Free verse rose into prominence lately because poets wanted to be freed from the bonds of metre.

From The Literature of Ecstasy by Mordell, Albert

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023