EPIGRAM

epigram, quip

(noun) a witty saying

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Noun

epigram (plural epigrams)

(obsolete) An inscription in stone.

A brief but witty saying.

A short, witty or pithy poem.

Anagrams

• primage

Source: Wiktionary


Ep"i*gram, n. Etym: [L. epigramma, fr. Gr. épigramme. See Graphic.]

1. A short poem treating concisely and pointedly of a single thought or event. The modern epigram is so contrived as to surprise the reader with a witticism or ingenious turn of thought, and is often satirical in character. Dost thou think I care for a satire or an epigram Shak.

Note: Epigrams were originally inscription on tombs, statues, temples, triumphal arches, etc.

2. An effusion of wit; a bright thought tersely and sharply expressed, whether in verse or prose.

3. The style of the epigram. Antithesis, i. e., bilateral stroke, is the soul of epigram in its later and technical signification. B. Cracroft.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

22 February 2025

ANALYSIS

(noun) the use of closed-class words instead of inflections: e.g., ‘the father of the bride’ instead of ‘the bride’s father’


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