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poetic justice

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR poetic justice ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

an ideal distribution of rewards and punishments such as is common in some poetry and fiction.

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RELATED WORDS

nemesis, retribution

Nearby words

  1. poet.,
  2. poetaster,
  3. poetess,
  4. poetic,
  5. poetic edda,
  6. poetic licence,
  7. poetic license,
  8. poetical,
  9. poeticism,
  10. poeticize

Origin of poetic justice

First recorded in 1720–30
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
British Dictionary definitions for poetic justice

poetic justice

noun

fitting retribution; just deserts
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
Idioms and Phrases with poetic justice

poetic justice

An outcome in which virtue is rewarded and evil punished, often in an especially appropriate or ironic manner. For example, It was poetic justice for the known thief to go to jail for the one crime he didn't commit. [Early 1700s]

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.