ode

noun \ ˈōd \

|Updated on: 16 Jun 2018

Definition of ode

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

Keats's ode "To a Nightingale"

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odist

play \ˈō-dist\ noun

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Examples of ode in a Sentence

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

Recent Examples of ode from the Web

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

— chanan tigay, GQ, "Eric Garcetti Is the Anti-Trump, Pro–Star Wars Man We Need," 12 June 2018
The song is an ode to the boys that moms everywhere warned their daughters not to date...but dated anyway.

— refinery29.com, "Anna Clendening On How Justin Bieber Inspired Her New Track "Boys Like You"," 4 June 2018
The notable new song was an ode to former Oakland A’s Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco.

— peter hartlaub, San Francisco Chronicle, "The Lonely Island feels at home in surprise-filled live concert debut at Clusterfest 2018," 2 June 2018
Hailey Baldwin's ode to the unexpected scrunchie is one that's officially here to stay.

— calin van paris, Vogue, "Hailey Baldwin Pairs a Black Tie Ensemble With a Scrunchie—and Wins," 23 May 2018
This ode to Trump is part of a broader attempt by Cruz to get right with the Trump base.

— chris cillizza, CNN, "Ted Cruz's embarrassing ode to Donald Trump is why people hate politicians," 19 Apr. 2018
More than a simple portrait of a gifted classical musician, the film is an ode to a cultural giant, one whose work and fame defy all categorization.

— zachary lewis, idahostatesman, "‘Itzhak’ a touching portrait of model musician, human | Idaho Statesman," 29 Mar. 2018
More than a simple portrait of a gifted classical musician, the film is an ode to a cultural giant, one whose work and fame defy all categorization.

— zachary lewis, cleveland.com, "'Itzhak' paints touching portrait of model musician, human (review)," 20 Mar. 2018
Ray Charles's ode to the mint julep was a chart topper.

— mark will-weber, Town & Country, "A Complete History of the Mint Julep," 10 Apr. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ode.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of ode

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

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First Known Use: 1538

in the meaning defined above

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