clerihew

noun

Definition of clerihewnext
as in poem

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of clerihew Easy to write and fun to read, entrants were asked to write a clerihew that describes a famous scientist or other person, or event closely associated with fire. — William Gurstelle, WIRED, 16 Aug. 2011
Recent Examples of Synonyms for clerihew
  1. poem
  2. sonnet
  3. epigram
  4. limerick
  5. villanelle
  6. psalm
  7. ode
  8. elegy
Noun
  • More than 40 years after making his directorial debut with Pee-wee’s Big Adventure (1985), and penning the poem that would eventually inspire The Nightmare Before Christmas, Burton is expanding his artistic remit once more.
    — José Criales-Unzueta, Vanity Fair, 4 Nov. 2026
  • Some were traveling to funerals, weddings and family reunions that the poet laureate commemorated in a poem written in minutes.
    — Maddie Connors, Los Angeles Times, 3 Nov. 2026
Definition of poem
Noun
  • Stewart lent his voice to all 154 of William Shakespeare’s sonnets, including reflections on the narration process, in the 2026 audiobook Patrick Stewart Performs the Complete Sonnets of William Shakespeare.
    — Greg Evans, Deadline, 29 Oct. 2026
  • People can and should be skeptical about the sonnets written about starting NFL quarterbacks every offseason, when no one is getting sacked and almost everyone looks good.
    — Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 30 July 2026
Definition of sonnet
Noun
  • 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
Definition of epigram
Noun
  • The study picked 10 commercial large language models by top tech companies — including Meta, Anthropic and OpenAI — and asked the AI systems to make critical pamphlets, write limericks, give reasons if someone should join protests, and more.
    — Didi Tang, Fortune, 16 July 2026
  • He was also known for his haikus and limericks, including some written to summarize ethics.
    — Elliott Wenzler, Denver Post, 2 Apr. 2026
Definition of limerick
Noun
  • Not unlike the rules of the villanelle, which are here applied with less than perfect rigor.
    — New York Times, New York Times, 28 May 2026
  • From the sixteenth to the nineteenth century, villanelle was simply the French term for an Italian country song, and during the Renaissance, poets often used the title for their work regardless of a poem’s specific structure.
    — The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 19 Aug. 2025
Definition of villanelle
Noun
  • During a recent morning visit, large groups of Jewish worshippers circumambulated the holy site under close police guard, singing psalms at full volume and openly praying.
    — Ilan Ben Zion, Christian Science Monitor, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Psalm 23 is numbered Psalm 22 in the Greek Septuagint and Latin Vulgate because of differences in how the psalms are divided and numbered.
    — Frannie Comstock, Encyclopedia Britannica, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of psalm
Noun
  • The song marked her ode to summer, centering on a relationship that exists somewhere between friendship and romance.
    — Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 6 Nov. 2026
  • Both spots, meant to be modern odes to Southern hospitality, will be housed within the JW Marriott Washington, DC, giving its current culinary options an upgrade.
    — Nicole Hoey, Robb Report, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of ode
Noun
  • The result was a tapestry of bizarro folk elegies whose combination of violin, slide guitar, and the occasional lovestruck lyric sounded like tuning into AM radio in the midst of the apocalypse.
    — Henry Ivry, Pitchfork, 30 Oct. 2026
  • Black style passes through Gershwin and out into Nina Simone’s famous take and Bill Evans’s imperishable version, where the blues is filtered through Erik Satie’s minimalism to become a haunted, achingly beautiful elegy.
    — Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of elegy

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“Clerihew.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clerihew. Accessed 10 Nov. 2026.

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