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elegy definition

el·egy (el′ə jē)

noun pl. elegies -·gies

  1. any poem in elegiac verse
  2. a poem or song of lament and praise for the dead, as Shelley's “Adonais”
  3. any poem, song, etc. in a mournfully contemplative tone Gray's “Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard”

Etymology: Fr élégie < L elegia < Gr elegeia < elegos, a lament < ? IE base *el- > alms

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

elegy Synonyms

elegy

n.

funeral poem, requiem, lament, dirge; see epitaph, poem, song.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

elegy Usage Examples

Adjective modifier

  • beautiful: The film is a beautiful elegy on being different.

Converse of object

  • move: The tone was decorous and reserved, a moving elegy delivered by someone who didn't know the deceased very well.

Noun used with modifier

  • love: Ref. to women in love elegy: he takes them as real.
elegy usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

elegy quotes

Can we not force from widowed poetry, Now thou art dead, great Donne, one elegy To crown thy hearse?

-Carew,Thomas

elegy quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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"elegy." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 5 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/elegy>

APA Style

elegy. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 5th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/elegy

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