Rimbaud

American

[ram-boh, ran-boh] / ræmˈboʊ, rɛ̃ˈboʊ /

noun

(Jean Nicolas) Arthur 1854–91, French poet.

Rimbaud British

/ rɛ̃bo /

noun

Arthur (artyr). 1854–91, French poet, whose work, culminating in the prose poetry of Illuminations (published 1884), greatly influenced the symbolists. A Season in Hell (1873) draws on his tempestuous homosexual affair with Verlaine, after which he abandoned writing (aged about 20) and spent the rest of his life travelling

"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

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Teacher’s college followed high school along with a passion for French poet Arthur Rimbaud.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 25, 2025

She was obsessed with the French poet Arthur Rimbaud, and aged 17, it was a "seamless transition" to Bob Dylan.

From BBC • Nov. 4, 2025

She forms a musical partnership with Lenny Kaye, and begins performing her poetry, with the 19th century French poet Arthur Rimbaud as her spiritual inspiration.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 31, 2025

Music fans know the posters are advertising a new band; literature snobs know the quote is from Rimbaud; vigilantes know it’s all about recruiting young people to satanism.

From Washington Post • Nov. 15, 2022

He would read Rimbaud aloud with a very bad accent, marveling the while at his fluid speech.

From "Cannery Row" by John Steinbeck

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023