idyll

or i·dyl

[ ahyd-l ]

See synonyms for idyll on Thesaurus.com

noun

a delightful, tranquil rural scene or episode, reminiscent of or suitable for pastoral art or literature:A great many horror movies are set in a suburban idyll.
a short descriptive or narrative poem or prose work, depicting a pleasant, tranquil, idealized pastoral scene or event, or any charmingly simple episode in literature.

A long narrative poem on a major theme, but less elevated and formal in subject matter, language, and tone than an epic:Tennyson's Idylls of the King is an elegaic retelling of Arthurian legend.
a brief or inconsequential romantic affair.
Music. a composition, usually instrumental, of a pastoral or sentimental character.

Origin of idyll

First recorded in 1595–1605; from Latin īdyllium from Greek eidýllion “short pastoral poem,” equivalent to eíd(os) “form” + -yllion diminutive suffix

Words that may be confused with idyll

idle, idol, idyll

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use idyll in a sentence

It is not fanciful, with talking beasts, nor is it merely an exquisite idyl of the beasts themselves.
The Red Year | Louis Tracy
After a perusal of this new American idyl, no competent critic will contend that we lack proper themes for poetry in our own land.
The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 17, No. 101, March, 1866 | Various
As time went on, alas, it came more and more to seem that the Dorothea idyl had not been meant to be taken as a work of realism.
Love's Pilgrimage | Upton Sinclair
A rest-breathing idyl like this shows that it is possible for bits of heaven to appear here upon earth now and then!
The American Country Girl | Martha Foote Crow
The ancient garden had doubtless many a dream of love to keep, but none sweeter or truer than the idyl of Tyrrel and Ethel Rawdon.
The Man Between | Amelia E. Barr

British Dictionary definitions for idyll

idyll

sometimes US idyl

/ (ˈɪdɪl) /

noun

a poem or prose work describing an idealized rural life, pastoral scenes, etc
any simple narrative or descriptive piece in poetry or prose

a charming or picturesque scene or event
a piece of music with a calm or pastoral character

Origin of idyll

C17: from Latin īdyllium, from Greek eidullion, from eidos shape, (literary) form

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

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