elegiac stanza

9.9

A group of four lines in a poem with ABAB rhyme often used for poems about loss

noun
/ˌɛlɪˈdʒaɪɪk ˈstænzə/

Literature

: estrofa elegíaca

An elegiac stanza often consists of four lines, using iambic pentameter and an ABAB rhyme scheme.

Examples

The poem opens with an elegiac stanza reflecting on the beauty of nature.
An elegiac stanza typically follows an ABAB rhyme scheme.
Many poets in the Romantic era favored the elegiac stanza to express profound loss.
She experimented with the elegiac stanza, adapting its structure for modern themes.
The poem consists of several elegiac stanzas.
Many poets in the Romantic era favored the elegiac stanza to express profound loss.
She experimented with the elegiac stanza, adapting its structure for modern themes.

Synonyms

quatrain

vselegiac stanza

Literature

2 7.4

A group of four lines in a poem often with a rhyme

is the same metrical form specifically in iambic pentameter and ABAB rhyme

heroic stanza

vselegiac stanza

Literature

9.9

A four-line stanza with ten syllables per line and an abab rhyme used in epic poems

is the same form but used mainly for mournful, elegy-style poems

Surface Forms

elegiac stanza singular

elegiac stanzas plural

Morphology

elegiac + stanza

The phrase is a straightforward adjective+noun composition: 'elegiac' (expressing sadness) + 'stanza' (a verse unit) yields 'a stanza expressing sadness', so a learner who knows the constituents can derive the core meaning. The technical prosodic specifics (four lines in iambic pentameter with ABAB rhyme) are specialized literary knowledge not inferable from the words, but this does not block the basic compositional interpretation.

Etymology

Elegiac stanza comes from the word elegiac, which comes from 'elegy' meaning a sad song or poem, and stanza, which means a group of lines. It is a short, four-line pattern poets used to show 'loss' or 'mourning', so the name helps you remember it is for sad poems.