epigram

noun

ep·i·gram ˈe-pə-ˌgram How to pronounce epigram (audio)

: a concise poem dealing pointedly and often satirically with a single thought or event and often ending with an ingenious turn of thought

: a terse, sage, or witty and often paradoxical saying

: epigrammatic expression

epigrammatism

ˌe-pə-ˈgra-mə-ˌti-zəm How to pronounce epigram (audio)

noun

epigrammatist

ˌe-pə-ˈgra-mə-tist How to pronounce epigram (audio)

noun

Did you know?

Ancient Greeks and Romans used the word epigramma (from Greek epigraphein, meaning "to write on") to refer to a concise, witty, and often satirical verse. The Roman poet Martial (who published eleven books of these epigrammata, or epigrams, between the years 86 and 98 C.E.) was a master of the form: "You puff the poets of other days, / the living you deplore. / Spare me the accolade: your praise / Is not worth dying for." English speakers adopted the "verse" sense of the word when we first used epigram for a concise poem dealing pointedly and often satirically with a single thought or event in the 15th century. In the late 18th century, we began using epigram for concise, witty sayings, even if they didn't rhyme.

Example Sentences

Benjamin Franklin's famous epigram, “Remember that time is money”.

Recent Examples on the Web The epigram is applicable to the current stock market flavor-of-the-year, SPACs, or Special Purpose Acquisition Corporations.

Jerry Weissman, Forbes, 9 Apr. 2021 Some female citizens managed huge fortunes, such as those that appear in epigrams by the first century poet Martial.

National Geographic, 4 Nov. 2019 By then the epigrams had paled, and voters suspected that his business strengths, the risk-taking and stubborn autocratic personality, might not serve a president constrained by Congress and public opinion.

Robert D. Mcfadden, New York Times, 9 July 2019 This kind of aphorism fills the space left not only by the epigram but by the epistles once exchanged by friends with time to be funny.

Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 15 July 2019 These are the regal epigrams that stand alone, can seem like platitudes, and yet supply arch but indirect commentary on a turn of events without naming or tagging the players.

Jason Pontin, WIRED, 4 May 2018 Its writing resembles nothing so much as Scripture; ideas are condensed to epigrams, four or five to a paragraph.

Bill Mckibben, New Republic, 12 July 2017 The beauty of Bangs's writing is its messiness—the musings, tangents, anecdotes, and epigrams that somehow end up addressing the main point of his essay, and the way all this ephemera congeals into a coherent body of work.

Tal Rosenberg, Chicago Reader, 12 July 2017 Like the moralist Nietzsche, who also spun off disconcerting and misquotable epigrams, Machiavelli is at once overfamiliar and obscure.

Edmund Fawcett, New York Times, 16 June 2017 See More

Word History

Etymology

Middle English epigrame, borrowed from Latin epigrammat-, epigramma "inscription, epitaph, epigram," borrowed from Greek epigrammat-, epígramma "inscription on a tomb, monument or work of art" (Late Greek, "short poem, epigram"), from epigráphein "to mark the surface of, graze, scratch a mark on, inscribe" (from epi- epi- + gráphein "to cut into, scratch, inscribe, write") + -mat-, -ma, resultative noun suffix — more at carve

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

单词	epigram
释义	epigram noun ep·i·gram ˈe-pə-ˌgram 1 : a concise poem dealing pointedly and often satirically with a single thought or event and often ending with an ingenious turn of thought 2 : a terse, sage, or witty and often paradoxical saying 3 : epigrammatic expression epigrammatism ˌe-pə-ˈgra-mə-ˌti-zəm noun epigrammatist ˌe-pə-ˈgra-mə-tist noun Did you know? Ancient Greeks and Romans used the word epigramma (from Greek epigraphein, meaning "to write on") to refer to a concise, witty, and often satirical verse. The Roman poet Martial (who published eleven books of these epigrammata, or epigrams, between the years 86 and 98 C.E.) was a master of the form: "You puff the poets of other days, / the living you deplore. / Spare me the accolade: your praise / Is not worth dying for." English speakers adopted the "verse" sense of the word when we first used epigram for a concise poem dealing pointedly and often satirically with a single thought or event in the 15th century. In the late 18th century, we began using epigram for concise, witty sayings, even if they didn't rhyme. Synonyms adage aphorism apothegm byword maxim proverb saw saying sententia word See all Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences Benjamin Franklin's famous epigram, “Remember that time is money”. Recent Examples on the Web The epigram is applicable to the current stock market flavor-of-the-year, SPACs, or Special Purpose Acquisition Corporations. Jerry Weissman, Forbes, 9 Apr. 2021 Some female citizens managed huge fortunes, such as those that appear in epigrams by the first century poet Martial. National Geographic, 4 Nov. 2019 By then the epigrams had paled, and voters suspected that his business strengths, the risk-taking and stubborn autocratic personality, might not serve a president constrained by Congress and public opinion. Robert D. Mcfadden, New York Times, 9 July 2019 This kind of aphorism fills the space left not only by the epigram but by the epistles once exchanged by friends with time to be funny. Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 15 July 2019 These are the regal epigrams that stand alone, can seem like platitudes, and yet supply arch but indirect commentary on a turn of events without naming or tagging the players. Jason Pontin, WIRED, 4 May 2018 Its writing resembles nothing so much as Scripture; ideas are condensed to epigrams, four or five to a paragraph. Bill Mckibben, New Republic, 12 July 2017 The beauty of Bangs's writing is its messiness—the musings, tangents, anecdotes, and epigrams that somehow end up addressing the main point of his essay, and the way all this ephemera congeals into a coherent body of work. Tal Rosenberg, Chicago Reader, 12 July 2017 Like the moralist Nietzsche, who also spun off disconcerting and misquotable epigrams, Machiavelli is at once overfamiliar and obscure. Edmund Fawcett, New York Times, 16 June 2017 See More Word History Etymology Middle English epigrame, borrowed from Latin epigrammat-, epigramma "inscription, epitaph, epigram," borrowed from Greek epigrammat-, epígramma "inscription on a tomb, monument or work of art" (Late Greek, "short poem, epigram"), from epigráphein "to mark the surface of, graze, scratch a mark on, inscribe" (from epi- epi- + gráphein "to cut into, scratch, inscribe, write") + -mat-, -ma, resultative noun suffix — more at carve First Known Use 15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1 epigram noun as in proverb an often stated observation regarding something from common experience Benjamin Franklin's famous epigram, "Remember that time is money" Synonyms & Similar Words Relevance proverb saying word aphorism maxim motto adage apothegm saw sententia expression byword cliche axiom remark cliché bromide truth truism platitude commonplace precept felicity formula comment wheeze reflection note
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epigram

noun

Did you know?

Synonyms

Example Sentences

Word History

noun