clerihew

Definition of clerihewnext

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 Edited by Dava Sobel NOTE: A clerihew is a four-line poetic format invented in 1905 by Edmund Clerihew Bentley, who wrote humorous rhymes about all manner of persons, making frivolous fun of their names. Melissa Dehner, Scientific American, 26 Mar. 2021 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
Noun
  • The Uxbridge Police Department in Massachusetts posted a tongue-in-cheek poem urging residents to get revenge by reporting exes with active warrants.
    Michael Sinkewicz, FOXNews.com, 15 Feb. 2026
  • All types of lanterns are lighted throughout the streets, and poems and riddles are often written for entertainment.
    Jennifer Borresen, USA Today, 15 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • The character is speaking sonnets and doing ‘Ozymandias’ as well.
    Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 5 Feb. 2026
  • Ever wanted to dive into Shakespeare's sonnets or explore cinema analysis?
    Jamie Cuccinelli, Martha Stewart, 11 Jan. 2026
Noun
  • Holmes’ feed is a babbling stream of self-help epigrams, ankle-deep reflections and many, many photos of herself.
    Mark Z. Barabak, Mercury News, 10 Dec. 2025
  • That celebrated epigram is delivered by the character of Octave, who is the greatest creation of Renoir’s career—not least because he’s played by Renoir in a performance that’s essentially a self-portrait, even an onscreen self-creation.
    Richard Brody, New Yorker, 30 July 2025
Noun
  • There are some touching moments, dirty limericks and a good balance of characters presented by veterans of the scene.
    Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 2 Aug. 2025
  • They were trained to repeat dirty jokes and limericks about Ed Gein and Jeffrey Dahmer to customers.
    Rachel Hale, USA Today, 10 July 2025
Noun
  • 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
  • Elongated and paved with bricks, the path is a closed form, a kind of physical villanelle that thwarts the experience of continuity or the feeling of finitude.
    Hamilton Cain, BostonGlobe.com, 2 Mar. 2023
Noun
  • Like a typical Catholic Mass, scriptures, psalms and gospels will be read and the Holy Communion will be given.
    Alexa Herrera, CBS News, 5 Feb. 2026
  • Each song presents a lyrical tapestry that carries messages from God, frequently drawing upon references to biblical psalms.
    Ingrid Fajardo, Billboard, 26 Nov. 2025
Noun
  • Kaanapali Coast, of course, is an ode to Hawaii, opening with juicy peach nectar and lemon peel before settling into a creamy heart of coconut shavings, milk, and warm spice.
    Conçetta Ciarlo, Vogue, 9 Feb. 2026
  • In Austin, February is practically a monthlong ode to friendship, from brunches where the mimosas are mandatory to rooftop escapes, DIY adventures and dessert experiments that make staying in feel just as celebratory.
    Ana Gutierrez, Austin American Statesman, 7 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • Plus an elegy for Breonna Taylor, featuring cellist Jeffrey Zeigler.
    Britt Julious, Chicago Tribune, 14 Jan. 2026
  • These books can be read as comedies of cognitive dissonance or as melancholy elegies for the very possibility of closure.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 Dec. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Clerihew.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clerihew. Accessed 17 Feb. 2026.

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