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• song
  song

  noun

  a short metrical composition intended or adapted for singing, especially one in rhymed stanzas; a lyric; a ballad.
• Song
  Song

  noun

  a dynasty in China, a.d. 960–1279, characterized by a high level of achievement in painting, ceramics, and philosophy: overthrown by the Mongols. Also Sung

song

¹ American  

[sawng, song] / sɔŋ, sɒŋ /

noun

• songs
  plural

1. a short metrical composition intended or adapted for singing, especially one in rhymed stanzas; a lyric; a ballad.

2. a musical piece adapted for singing or simulating a piece to be sung.

   Mendelssohn's “Songs without Words.”

3. poetical composition; poetry.

4. the art or act of singing; vocal music.

5. something that is sung.

6. an elaborate vocal signal produced by an animal, as the distinctive sounds produced by certain birds, frogs, etc., in a courtship or territorial display.

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idioms

1. for a song, at a very low price; as a bargain.

   We bought the rug for a song when the estate was auctioned off.

Song ² American  

[sawng] / sɔŋ /

noun

Pinyin.

1. a dynasty in China, a.d. 960–1279, characterized by a high level of achievement in painting, ceramics, and philosophy: overthrown by the Mongols. Also Sung

2. Ailing Ai-ling Soong.

3. Qingling Ching-ling Soong.

4. Meiling Mei-ling Soong.

5. Ziwen Tse-ven Soong.

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song ¹ British  

/ sɒŋ /

noun

1. 1. a piece of music, usually employing a verbal text, composed for the voice, esp one intended for performance by a soloist

   2. the whole repertory of such pieces

   3. ( as modifier )

      a song book

2. poetical composition; poetry

3. the characteristic tuneful call or sound made by certain birds or insects

4. the act or process of singing

   they raised their voices in song

5. at a bargain price

6. informal performing at peak efficiency or ability

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Song ² British  

/ sʊŋ /

noun

1. the Pinyin transliteration of the Chinese name for Sung

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song More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing song

• for a song
• swan song

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• songlike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• songs
  plural

Etymology

Origin of song

First recorded before 900; Middle English song, sang, Old English; cognate with German Sang, Old Norse sǫngr, Gothic saggws

Explanation

Feeling happy? Feeling sad? Sing a song! A song is poetry set to music, and there’s a song for every occasion, from “Happy Birthday” to “Here Comes the Bride.” Tra la la! Most songs have words, or lyrics, though not all of them do — and we call the musical sound a bird makes a song as well. Sometimes rhyming poems are called songs, like Pablo Neruda's "April Rain Song." If your friend tells you she bought her bicycle "for a song," that simply means it was inexpensive, not that she actually had to sing a song to get it.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

song Song songs

"You wouldn't pick up a guitar, and be surprised that you couldn't play a song when you've never picked up a guitar before - public speaking is the exact same thing."

From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026

Ralph MacDonald and William Salter wrote the song with Withers, who died of heart complications on March 30, 2020.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 5, 2026

Listen to the pop-country godmother: If you’re enjoying the country-crossover renaissance exemplified by Ella Langley’s chart-topping song “Choosin’ Texas,” you’re in for a treat: Langley’s mentor, Miranda Lambert, has a new album out.

From Slate ● Oct. 5, 2026

The song recently set a record by spending 24 weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

From three flights below a raucous cheer arises, a new song on the gramophone.

From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse

But the court also noted that Song had admitted to the charges and shown remorse.

From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026

David is the frontman of the Italian rock band Måneskin, which formed in Rome in 2016 and won the Eurovision Song Contest in 2021 with their song “Zitti e Buoni.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026

The event, billed as the The Land of Song Festival, will feature world-renowned Italian Tenor Andrea Bocelli, but choirs are pulling out because of steep costs that include fees for individual singers.

From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026

Spencer—an earl, historian and former NBC journalist—in his book “Swan Song: Diana, My Sister” has again swung the spotlight back to that difficult time.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026

As a tyke the rhyming sounds had charmed her out of the boredom she often felt during the interminable Song.

From "Gathering Blue" by Lois Lowry

The complaint also said Mattie Music Group enlisted the help of musicologist Alexander Stewart to determine “substantial” similarities between the two songs.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 5, 2026

As a child I was once gifted a “custom” cassette tape with songs “written for me.”

From Salon ● Oct. 4, 2026

We’ll have a sunset set of Soulection and Friends, so special guests will pop out to do a couple songs.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026

Mr. Bond also explores how researchers are able to interpret the “language” of certain animals, notably the different barks and whines of dogs and the songs and calls of birds.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026

I remember Mutti would sometimes hum along with her songs when we were listening to them.

From "An Elephant in the Garden" by Michael Morpurgo