English sonnet

American  

noun

1. Shakespearean sonnet.

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Etymology

Origin of English sonnet

First recorded in 1900–05

Compare meaning

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

• Italian vs. English sonnet

Example Sentences

The first English sonnet cycle was Philip Sidney’s “Astrophil and Stella,” published in 1591.

From The New Yorker • Aug. 5, 2019

Among students and scholars of Persian literature, she was recognized for her command — and renovation — of the ghaza l, a poetic form that is often compared with an English sonnet.

From Washington Post

Imitation of Petrarch is a constant characteristic of the English sonnet throughout the sixteenth century from the date of the earliest efforts of Surrey and Wyatt. 

From A Life of William Shakespeare with portraits and facsimiles by Lee, Sidney, Sir

For many of Wordsworth's and most of Mrs. Browning's sonnets, though they have the rime-scheme of the Italian, have the simple thought arrangement of the English sonnet.

From The Principles of English Versification by Baum, Paull Franklin

How no Age is Content, 266*; inventor of English sonnet, 290; Psalm LV.,

From English Verse Specimens Illustrating its Principles and History by Alden, Raymond MacDonald