paean

American  

[pee-uhn] / ˈpi ən /

Or pean

noun

1. a song of praise, joy, or triumph.

2. a formal expression of high praise, as a poem, movie, or monument.

   This documentary is another paean to the mystical power and beauty of the ocean.

3. an elaborate or excessive expression of praise; panegyric.

   His restaurant review is just a long and not very interesting paean to his favorite ethnic cuisine.

4. a hymn of invocation or thanksgiving to Apollo or some other ancient Greek deity.

---

paean British  

/ ˈpiːən /

noun

1. a hymn sung in ancient Greece in invocation of or thanksgiving to a deity

2. any song of praise

3. enthusiastic praise

   the film received a paean from the critics

---

Other Word Forms

• paeanism
  noun

---

Etymology

Origin of paean

First recorded in 1585–95; from Latin Paeān, Paeōn “a Greek god, especially Apollo in his capacity as healer; a religious or festive hymn, addressed to Apollo or another god,” from Greek Paiā́n, Paiḗōn, Paiṓn “choral song, hymn, especially to Apollo,” personified as “the divine physician, Apollo”

---

Explanation

A paean is a hymn of praise or thanksgiving. You might sing a paean in church, where many hymns extol the greatness of God. Paean was originally a song of praise for Apollo, or Paian as he was sometimes called. You can now use paean to mean any song of praise, regardless of the deity, or to mean a formal expression of praise, like a eulogy. At your mother's birthday dinner, it might be nice for you and your brothers and sisters to write and sing a paean to her good-natured love and support of you over many years.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

paean

I wrote what I thought was the most epic love paean of all time called “Love Lasts Forever.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2026

His prose is energetic, occasionally overexuberant — and, above all, a paean to Capra’s enduring importance.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 27, 2026

DUBAI—Hamam al-Hammami, identified by people familiar with the matter as the co-pilot on FlyDubai Flight 1073, posted a paean to flying in a now-deleted social-media post from June 2022 written in Arabic.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026

It’s a wistful, country-folk paean that offers both a wry yet realistic assessment of the disposition of collections someone leaves the planet.

From Salon ● Jul. 29, 2026

It is evident that not even the most inspired genius can sustain such a flight for ever, and after this magnificent paean the workings of Beethoven's imagi140nation resemble those of Nature herself.

From Music: An Art and a Language by Walter Raymond Spalding

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---

Related Words

• hymn

---