Definition of bucolic
Read the Latest from M-W
bucolic was our Word of the Day on 04/21/2017. Hear the podcast!
Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP
Examples of bucolic in a Sentence
Pine Ridge … . Its generic blandness and vaguely bucolic quality anticipated similar names—the Oak Parks and River Groves and Lake Forests and Chestnut Hills … —Ian Frazier, On the Rez, 2000
… the massive population growth has transformed a collection of bucolic villages and mill towns into a chain of strip-mall suburbs. —Jonathan Cohn, New Republic, 7 Feb. 2000
… Intel gives its generations of microprocessors such bucolic code names as Deschutes, Tillamook, and Katmai but then rolls them out with names that rival those of popes and medieval heads of state: Pentium the III, Celeron the Meek, and Xeon the Magnificent. —Jake Kirchner, PC Magazine, 25 May 1999
… the North Shore commuter train scuds through bucolic landscape for a while, the rocks and trees permitting glimpses of Appleton Farms … —John Updike, New England Monthly, October 1989
a bucolic region where farms are still common
Recent Examples of bucolic from the Web
-
Surprisingly for such a bucolic place, Salisbury was once an industrial center.
-
During his last five years on the bucolic Moraga campus, he was credited with increasing department revenue through corporate sponsorships, development of an athletic brand, and the program’s first licensing and royalty contracts.
-
Bunkered beneath the bucolic expanse of Blackberry Farm, the fabled gastro-utopia of the American South, lies a stockpile of intoxicants that ought to last for centuries.
-
When this happens, the balance of wealth and job opportunity will change in favor of a bucolic lifestyle.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'bucolic'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The Origin of Bucolic is "Utterly" Quaint
We get bucolic from the Latin word bucolicus, which is ultimately from the Greek word boukolos, meaning "cowherd." When bucolic was first used in English in the early 17th century, it meant "pastoral" in a narrow sense - that is, it referred to things related to shepherds or herdsmen and in particular to pastoral poetry. Later in the 19th century, it was applied more broadly to things rural or rustic. Bucolic has also been occasionally used as a noun meaning "a pastoral poem" or "a bucolic person."
BUCOLIC Defined for English Language Learners
bucolic
playDefinition of bucolic for English Language Learners
-
: of or relating to the country or country life
Learn More about bucolic
-
See words that rhyme with bucolic Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for bucolic Spanish Central: Translation of bucolic Nglish: Translation of bucolic for Spanish speakers
Seen and Heard
What made you want to look up bucolic? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Writing? Check your grammar now!