epigram

American  

[ep-i-gram] / ˈɛp ɪˌgræm /

noun

1. any witty, ingenious, or pointed saying tersely expressed.

   Synonyms:

   bon mot, quip, witticism

2. epigrammatic expression.

   Oscar Wilde had a genius for epigram.

3. a short, often satirical poem dealing concisely with a single subject and usually ending with a witty or ingenious turn of thought.

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epigram British  

/ ˈɛpɪˌɡræm /

noun

1. a witty, often paradoxical remark, concisely expressed

2. a short, pungent, and often satirical poem, esp one having a witty and ingenious ending

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epigram Cultural  

1. Any pithy, witty saying or short poem. An aphorism can serve as an epigram, if it is brief.

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Two other words are similar: an epigraph is usually an inscription, as on a statue; an epitaph can be such an inscription or it can be a brief literary note commemorating a dead person.

Several authors are noted for their epigrams, including Mark Twain and Oscar Wilde. One of Wilde's epigrams is “I can resist everything except temptation.”

Other Word Forms

• epigrammatic adjective
• epigrammatically adverb

Etymology

Origin of epigram

1400–50; late Middle English < Latin epigramma < Greek epígramma inscription, epigram. See epi-, -gram ¹

Example Sentences

Holmes’ feed is a babbling stream of self-help epigrams, ankle-deep reflections and many, many photos of herself.

From Los Angeles Times

The epigrams she presents at the beginning are weird.

From The Wall Street Journal

Among Burke's epigrams are such copybook maxims as "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing."

From Salon

In this one, he basically stands around indulging a series of cosmic snit fits, laying waste to the digitally confected scenery and uttering tedious epigrams about time, recurrence and the apocalypse.

From Los Angeles Times

She fills the novel with epigrams, allusions and footnotes from actual texts and literature, ranging from "The Wealth of Nations" and "The Wretched of the Earth" to Wordsworth and nursery rhymes.

From Salon

Related Words

• aphorism