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haikai

[hahy-kahy]
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noun, plural hai·kai for 2. Prosody.
  1. an informal type of linked verse originated by Bashō, a 17th-century Japanese poet.
  2. a poem of this type.
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Origin of haikai

1880–85; < Japanese haikai (no renga) jesting (linked verse); earlier faikai < Middle Chinese, equivalent to Chinese páixié jest
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for haikai

Historical Examples

  • The very word poetry (or haikai) came in his mouth to stand for morality.

    The Japanese Spirit

    Yoshisaburo Okakura

  • The most attenuated form of all is the hokku (or haikai) which consists of only three lines, namely, 17 syllables.