poem

American  

[poh-uhm] / ˈpoʊ əm /

noun

• poems
  plural

1. 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.

2. composition that, though not in verse, is characterized by great beauty of language or expression.

   a prose poem from the Scriptures; a symphonic poem.

3. something having qualities that are suggestive of or likened to those of poetry.

   Marcel, that chicken cacciatore was an absolute poem.

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poem British  

/ ˈpəʊɪm /

noun

1. 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

2. a literary composition that is not in verse but exhibits the intensity of imagination and language common to it

   a prose poem

3. anything resembling a poem in beauty, effect, etc

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• poems
  plural

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

Explanation

A poem is written by composing lines of metrical feet (those are like beats or counts of syllables), arranged rhythmically. If you're looking to impress your crush, try penning a poem. Poetry is literature in metrical form, and a poem is what we call a piece of poetry. There are so many different kinds of poems it's almost impossible to define, but usually poems are written in short lines, and sometimes don't have too many lines. What counts in a poem is distilling something down, and finding the right words. If someone tells you that your Tweets are like little poems, then you must be a lovely writer.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

poem poems

In a sense, the film, directed by Kent Jones, is like a wonderful little poem.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

The title itself is a play on Los Angeles and “Angelitos Negros,” the poem later popularized through recordings by artists including Eartha Kitt, Roberta Flack and Celia Cruz.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026

Newyddion S4C understands Edwards' attempt fell far short of winning the competition, with his poem placed in the third grouping of entries - a system used by the judging panel to rank entries.

From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026

The nonlinear nature of Homer’s epic poem lends itself to his style.

From Salon ● Aug. 2, 2026

She even writes a poem imagining all the famous sites of Europe she hopes to see someday.

From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly

"The Smyrnaeans have the river Meles, with its lovely water, and at its springs is the grotto, where they say Homer composed his poems," wrote the 2nd-century Greek chronicler and geographer Pausanias.

From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026

“They just slap you across the face with their style and with their relevancy,” extols Meyers of the poems.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

This setting of five poems on deep and serious subjects is one of the most extraordinarily affecting gifts ever created by one lover for another.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

McNish wrote one of the poems in her new collection, Call Me, after she got scared, dropping her teenage daughter at her first house party.

From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026

But it’s a collection of Emily Dickinson poems, identical to the one Dad gave Celia when she graduated from eighth grade three years ago.

From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison

Related Words

• ballad
• composition
• epic
• lyric
• poetry
• rhyme
• sonnet
• verse
• writing