1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

poetaster

noun

ˈpō-ə-ˌta-stər How to pronounce poetaster (audio)
Definition of poetasternext
as in poet
a person who writes poetry she's a poetaster whose verse never rises above what is found on greeting cards

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

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 poetaster Heti’s detractors could probably put a bottle in the middle of a table and entertain themselves reading lines out of context in suave, poetaster voices. — New York Times, 7 Feb. 2022 But -aster words have never been particularly common, with the exception of poetaster, an inferior poet. — Melissa Mohr, The Christian Science Monitor, 28 June 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for poetaster
  1. poet
  2. minstrel
Noun
  • Her mystical encounters with the divine through the natural world are reminiscent of poets like Gerard Manley Hopkins, Wendell Berry and Mary Oliver.
    — Amy Cannon, The Conversation, 18 Sep. 2026
  • His third album, 2001’s Phantom Moon, made with poet and playwright Steven Sater, pushed further into that territory.
    — SPIN Staff, SPIN, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of poet
Noun
  • Last month, retailer Target pulled a children’s Halloween costume from its shelves after widespread social media backlash, apologizing for selling a garment that critics said evoked racist minstrel caricatures.
    — Dave Collins, Los Angeles Times, 21 Sep. 2026
  • In August, discount retailer Target stopped selling a children's Halloween costume that some critics said evoked racist minstrel caricatures, The Associated Press reported.
    — Megan Cerullo, CBS News, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of minstrel

Browse Nearby Words

poet
poetaster
poetasters
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP

Cite this Entry

“Poetaster.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/poetaster. Accessed 25 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of tactile

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 25
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
crayons-in-a-circle
Guess the Color Quiz Questions that use the whole box of crayons.
See All