poem
Americannoun
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a composition in verse, especially one that is characterized by a highly developed artistic form and by the use of heightened language and rhythm to express an intensely imaginative interpretation of the subject.
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composition that, though not in verse, is characterized by great beauty of language or expression.
a prose poem from the Scriptures; a symphonic poem.
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something having qualities that are suggestive of or likened to those of poetry.
Marcel, that chicken cacciatore was an absolute poem.
noun
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a composition in verse, usually characterized by concentrated and heightened language in which words are chosen for their sound and suggestive power as well as for their sense, and using such techniques as metre, rhyme, and alliteration
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a literary composition that is not in verse but exhibits the intensity of imagination and language common to it
a prose poem
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anything resembling a poem in beauty, effect, etc
Etymology
Origin of poem
First recorded in 1540–50; from Latin poēma, from Greek poíēma “poem, something made,” from poiē- (variant stem of poieîn “to make”) + -ma, noun suffix
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
My notebooks, every bad poem I’d ever written, my will and my TV show memorabilia were tucked away in an antique trunk beneath the table upon which sat the books I was currently reading.
From Los Angeles Times
Years before, a millionaire buried a treasure somewhere in the desert, leaving a poem with clues to its whereabouts.
Tim Torkildson writes at least a dozen short poems a day that he sends to loved ones and strangers, including reporters whose work he follows.
He is the author of three collections of lyric poems and two book-length narrative poems in heroic couplets that nearly defy summary.
Across the way, the words “ha,” “he” and “ho” cascade from the ceiling like a shape poem.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
