poetic licence

Save This Word!

noun

justifiable departure from conventional rules of form, fact, logic, etc, as in poetry

QUIZZES

QUIZ YOURSELF ON “ITS” VS. “IT’S”!

Apostrophes can be tricky; prove you know the difference between it’s and its in this crafty quiz!

Question 1 of 12

On the farm, the feed for chicks is significantly different from the roosters’; ______ not even comparable.

it's

its

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Words nearby poetic licence

poetess, poetic, poeticism, poeticize, poetic justice, poetic licence, poetic license, poetics, poetize, poet laureate, poetry

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

Example sentences from the Web for poetic licence

His mature wit and poetic style drew in those around him and we connected instantly.
Cuban Hip-Hop Was Born in Alamar|Daniel Levin|December 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Half of our music and all of our dancing is just about worshipping, praising, staring at and waxing poetic about the human ass.
Kim Kardashian Bares Her Shiny, Bounteous Butt, Breaks the Internet|Marlow Stern|November 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Nothing but a poetic kind of consciousness could have conceived of anything like this.
Stephen King, “Falling,” and My Father’s Poetry|Christopher Dickey|September 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Hulagu then gave his men licence to rape, kill and plunder with the caveat that Christians and Jews were to be spared.
In Threatening Baghdad, Militants Seek to Undo 800 Years of History|Justin Marozzi|August 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST

In a poetic move, Cory is now a middle school teacher himself, following in the footsteps of his mentor, Mr. Feeney.
‘Boy Meets World’ Fans Will Hate ‘Girl Meets World’|Kevin Fallon|June 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It is full of poetic feeling, and the flesh tints are unusually natural.
Women in the fine arts, from the Seventh Century B.C. to the Twentieth Century A.D.|Clara Erskine Clement
And then what could be more deep and poetic than Liszt's transcriptions of Schubert's and Wagner's songs?
Music-Study in Germany|Amy Fay
Thus Ney returned to France in disgrace with his comrades, and hated by his enemies owing to the licence he allowed his soldiers.
Napoleon's Marshals|R. P. Dunn-Pattison
On July 19 a proclamation was issued forbidding the possession of firearms without licence.
The Philippine Islands|John Foreman
Many mistake the highly poetic enthusiasm which such scenes excite for the spirit of piety.
Madame Roland, Makers of History|John S. C. Abbott

MEANINGS

WORD GAMES

LEARN

WRITING

WORD OF THE DAY