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According to the poet Homer, the Greek god Apollo sometimes took the guise of Paean, physician to the gods. The earliest musical paeans were hymns of thanksgiving and praise that were dedicated to Apollo. They were sung at events ranging from boisterous festivals to public funerals, and they were the traditional marching songs of armies heading into battle. Over time, the word became generalized, and it is now used for any kind of tribute.
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Examples of paean in a Sentence
Jason Lamphier, EW.com, 14 July 2024
Sadly, Leap of Faith isn’t nearly as compelling as Martin is — the movie becomes a paean to genuine faith and requires Jonas to grow a conscience — but the film stands as an intriguing and candid look into the performer’s dark side.
—Will Leitch, Vulture, 29 Mar. 2024
But that admission would have come only after a lengthy paean to the mighty Russian armed forces.
—Boris Bondarev, Foreign Affairs, 17 Oct. 2022
There’s much to appreciate in Parthenope, Paolo Sorrentino’s second consecutive bittersweet paean to his home city of Naples.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for paean 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'paean.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Paean.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/paean. Accessed 26 Jul. 2024.
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paean
noun
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