ode

1 of 2

noun

ˈōd 

plural odes

1

: a lyric poem usually marked by exaltation of feeling and style, varying length of line, and complexity of stanza forms

Clifton's ode "homage to my hips"

2

: something that shows respect for or celebrates the worth or influence of another : homage

The museum would be an ode to visual storytelling, drawn from the director's collection of film ephemera and fine art.

—Chanan Tigay

The recipe is an ode to my homeland, Vietnam, and I'd like to share it with my new friends in America.

—Gourmet

odist

ˈō-dist 

noun

-ode

2 of 2

noun combining form

1

: way : path

electrode

2

: electrode

diode

Examples of ode in a Sentence

Noun

This poem is titled, “An Ode to My Mother.”

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The top of the Garden Pavilion is covered in solar panels, which are feet away from a food garden that is an ode to the White House kitchen garden Michelle Obama planted in 2009. —Tara Molina, CBS News, 4 June 2026

Some holes will feature odes to the historic Stockyards, Sundance Square, Panther City and the Fort Worth Courthouse. —Ella Gonzales june 4, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 June 2026

Dining at Shuffletown Grill The restaurant opened as an ode to the Shuffletown Dragway, a nearby drag-racing strip that got its start in the 1950s and closed in the 1990s. —Heidi Finley, Charlotte Observer, 3 June 2026

After another $30,957 this weekend, Ildikó Enyedi’s ode to a tree starring Tony Leung Chiu-wai and Leá Seydoux has made $307,142. —Brian Welk, IndieWire, 3 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle French or Late Latin; Middle French, from Late Latin, from Greek ōidē, literally, song, from aeidein, aidein to sing; akin to Greek audē voice

Noun combining form

Greek -odos, from hodos

First Known Use

Noun

1538, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for ode

• blowed
• bode
• code
• crowed
• flowed
• glowed
• goad
• growed
• knowed
• load
• lode
• lowed

Kids Definition

ode

1 of 2 noun

ˈōd 

: a lyric poem that expresses a noble feeling with dignity

-ode

2 of 2 noun combining form

ˌōd

1

: way : path

electrode

2

: electrode

diode

Etymology

Noun combining form

derived from Greek hodos "way, path"