Ode

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /oʊd/

Definitions

1. A lyrical composition expressing praise, admiration, or deep feeling toward a person, object, or abstract concept
2. A formal lyric poem that celebrates or honors a particular subject with emotional intensity and elaborate language
3. An elevated verse composition devoted to praising or contemplating a specific person, thing, or idea with passionate devotion

Etymology: The Ancient Greek "ōidḗ" simply meant "song," and it came from the verb "aeidein," to sing. Greek poets used it for sung verse, so the sense of formal lyric praise was built in from the start. The word passed into Late Latin as "ōda," and from there into Middle French as "ode," which is how English received it. Its Greek shape survives in an unexpected cousin. "Aoede," the name of one of the Muses in Greek myth, is a doublet of "ode," meaning the two words descend from the same source but reached English by different routes. The Muse's name points to the song itself, the same idea that the poems were meant to be heard rather than simply read. English speakers now mostly meet "ode" as a title, as in Keats's odes or Pindar's victory odes. The short form is a shortening of the longer Middle French and Latin words, so the familiar two-syllable shape is a trimmed version of an older form.

Synonyms: poem, lyric

Antonyms: prose