metaphysical poetry

American  

[met-uh-fiz-ik-uhl poh-i-tree] / ˌmɛt əˈfɪz ɪk əl ˈpoʊ ɪ tri /

noun

1. the poetry of a group of 17th-century English poets, notably John Donne, characterized by a highly intellectual, philosophical, and witty style with extensive use of ingenious conceits or extended metaphors.

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Other Word Forms

• metaphysical poet
  noun

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

metaphysical poetry

She is, please note, an esteemed and intimidating scholar of the metaphysical poetry of John Donne.

From New York Times ● Jan. 27, 2012

For four years they published a little magazine of mostly metaphysical poetry, called The Fugitive.

From Time Magazine Archive

A happy combination of sentiment, metaphysical poetry and A Connecticut Yankee at King Arthur's Court, Berkeley Square has all the qualifications of a succes d'estime and most qualifications for success at the box office.

From Time Magazine Archive

The Annus Mirabilis is a tedious performance; it is a tissue of far-fetched, heavy, lumbering conceits, and in the worst style of what has been denominated metaphysical poetry.

From Lectures on the English Poets Delivered at the Surrey Institution by Alfred Rayney Waller

In the field of metaphysical poetry it has recently been identified by Santayana as "normal madness."

From The Philosophy of Spinoza by Joseph Ratner