1
a
: a narrative composition in rhythmic verse suitable for singing
a ballad about King Arthur
b
: an art song accompanying a traditional ballad
2
: a simple song : air
3
: a popular song
especially
: a slow romantic or sentimental song
a ballad they danced to at their wedding reception
Examples of ballad in a Sentence
a haunting ballad about lost love and loneliness
Recent Examples on the Web
Whether that means rewriting a love ballad in a couple of days or suiting up in a onesie for a press event on the other side of the world, the commitment never wavers.
—
Hanna Wickes, Kansas City Star, 27 Mar. 2026
His lot has electricity, a shack for storage, a living room with a TV and a sound system that blasts Spanish-language ballads through the encampment — or Usher, depending on the mood.
—Grant Stringer, Mercury News, 26 Mar. 2026
In stark contrast to the treacly ballads of 2025’s Every Video Without Your Face, Every Sound Without Your Name, Mr Cobra is all jagged edges, informed by free jazz, musique concrète, and experimental cinema.
—Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 23 Mar. 2026
The album’s name, Arirang, pays tribute to a treasured Korean folk ballad of the same name, which was famously the country’s first song, sung by Korean men, ever recorded (it was preserved for posterity by American ethnologist Alice Fletcher in 1896).
—Nicole Fell, HollywoodReporter, 21 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for ballad
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Hanna Wickes, Kansas City Star, 27 Mar. 2026
His lot has electricity, a shack for storage, a living room with a TV and a sound system that blasts Spanish-language ballads through the encampment — or Usher, depending on the mood.
—Grant Stringer, Mercury News, 26 Mar. 2026
In stark contrast to the treacly ballads of 2025’s Every Video Without Your Face, Every Sound Without Your Name, Mr Cobra is all jagged edges, informed by free jazz, musique concrète, and experimental cinema.
—Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 23 Mar. 2026
The album’s name, Arirang, pays tribute to a treasured Korean folk ballad of the same name, which was famously the country’s first song, sung by Korean men, ever recorded (it was preserved for posterity by American ethnologist Alice Fletcher in 1896).
—Nicole Fell, HollywoodReporter, 21 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for ballad
Cite this Entry
“Ballad.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ballad. Accessed 5 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
ballad
noun
bal·lad
ˈbal-əd 
1
: a poem that tells a story of adventure, of romance, or of a hero, that is suitable for singing, and that usually has stanzas of four lines with a rhyme on the second and fourth lines
2
: a simple song
3
: a usually slow or sentimental popular song
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