poem

noun

po·​em ˈpō-əm 

-im,

ˈpōm,

 also  ˈpȯ(-)im,

ˈpō-ˌem 

1

: a composition in verse

2

: something suggesting a poem (as in expressiveness, lyricism, or formal grace)

the house we stayed in … was itself a poem

—H. J. Laski

Synonyms

• lyric
• rune
• song
• verse

Examples of poem in a Sentence

He wrote a poem about his parents.

your assignment is to write two poems about springtime

Recent Examples on the Web

As the Cure’s front man and primary songwriter, Smith’s never been shy about drawing blatant lyrical inspiration from his favorite books and poems. —Chris Stanton, Vulture, 5 Nov. 2024

Co-written with The Office executive producer Ben Silverman, The Night Before Christmas at Dunder Mifflin is described as a comedic retelling of the classic poem, featuring a visit from Steve Carell’s Michael Scott as Santa and narrated by Baumgartner’s Kevin Malone. —Marc Berman, Forbes, 4 Nov. 2024

And then the last poem of the book is a fortune-teller telling me my mother has died. —James Factora, Them, 1 Nov. 2024

Eventually, nine muses were identified, covering every branch of the arts, in the ancient Greek poet Hesiod’s introduction to Theogony, his epic poem about mythical stories and characters (circa 730–700BC). —Alison Habens, JSTOR Daily, 31 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle French poeme, from Latin poema, from Greek poiēma, from poiein

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing poem

• found poem
• heroic poem
• prose poem
• symphonic poem
• tone poem

Kids Definition

poem

noun

po·​em ˈpō-əm  -im 

ˈpōm,

 also  ˈpō-ˌem

: a composition in verse