Definition of epigramnext
as in proverb
an often stated observation regarding something from common experience Benjamin Franklin's famous epigram, "Remember that time is money"

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Recent Examples of epigram By greatly expanding the dimensions of his images, with their muted palettes, tight cropping, found symmetries, and laconic wit, had the maestro of the photographic epigram betrayed his subtractive aesthetic? James Quandt, Artforum, 2 June 2026 Johnson is the author of the epigrams, but Boswell is very much the co-author. David Frum, The Atlantic, 27 May 2026 Holmes’ feed is a babbling stream of self-help epigrams, ankle-deep reflections and many, many photos of herself. Mark Z. Barabak, Mercury News, 10 Dec. 2025 That celebrated epigram is delivered by the character of Octave, who is the greatest creation of Renoir’s career—not least because he’s played by Renoir in a performance that’s essentially a self-portrait, even an onscreen self-creation. Richard Brody, New Yorker, 30 July 2025 It’s been codified as myths, proverbs, clichés, epigrams, parables; the skeleton of every great story. Jann E. Freed, Forbes.com, 18 June 2025 Her poems of that era — sonnets, epigrams, eminently quotable snippets of rhymed gossip — pulse with the dynamism and attitude of the modern city. A.o. Scott, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2025 Throughout, Snook hams for laughs, turning Wilde’s witticisms and epigrams into slapstick. Christian Lewis, Variety, 28 Mar. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for epigram
Noun
  • The reason can be explained by a Japanese proverb about the importance of leaving no mess.
    Lawrence Dow, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 26 June 2026
  • Popeye the Sailor Man has been guzzling spinach since 1931 to build muscle, while the apple-a-day advice derives from a 19th-century Welsh proverb.
    Samantha Conti, Footwear News, 5 May 2026
Noun
  • As the saying goes, hypocrisy is the tribute that vice pays to virtue.
    Quinta Jurecic, The Atlantic, 16 July 2026
  • One person’s flip-flop is another person’s strappy sandal… or so the saying goes.
    Talia Abbas, Vogue, 10 July 2026
Noun
  • The game’s objective is to group words or objects into four groups of four based on commonalities within each group as quickly as possible.
    Mark Cooper, New York Times, 14 July 2026
  • The latter line, in its phrasing and melody and even the musical tone of its words, is an almost perfect mimic of Santa Claus asking Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer to guide his sleigh.
    Sadie Sartini Garner, Pitchfork, 14 July 2026
Noun
  • Cruyff came up with many aphorisms over the course of his life.
    James Horncastle, New York Times, 30 June 2026
  • In romance, Tolstoy’s aphorism about the family is reversed.
    Lillian Fishman, New Yorker, 27 June 2026

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“Epigram.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/epigram. Accessed 20 Jul. 2026.

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