epigram
3
8.0
- noun
- /ˈɛpɪˌɡræm/
- Literature
:
epigrama
- Her graduation speech began with an epigram that humorously highlighted the challenges of academic life.
Examples
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His writings are enriched by epigrams from the world's religious traditions.
Academic text (2000) -
Democratic theory is summed up in the epigram that the governed should govern.
Academic text (1996) -
I thought I would try though, with an epigram of my own.
-
I love this epigram but can't quite say why.
Academic text (2000) -
I'm sure this epigram will appear on some band's lyric sheet.
Fiction book (1994) -
You can keep your silly epigrams to yourself, can't you?
-
I always liked Ortega y Gasset's epigram that "culture is what remains after we've forgotten everything we've read."
Academic text (2010) -
Junger appropriately begins his tale with an epigram from Walter Scott: "It's no fish ye're buying, it's men's lives."
Academic text (2002) -
Oscar Wilde is known for his sharp wit, often expressing it through an epigram like "I can resist anything except temptation."
-
The book opens with a clever epigram that perfectly encapsulates its theme, leaving readers intrigued.
Synonyms
20
6.4
A short, clever thing someone says to make people laugh
9
7.4
A short, clever saying that shows a general truth
A short, clever saying that teaches a truth or gives advice
How Witty
Surface Forms
Morphology
epigram = epi + gram
Although etymologically epi- + -gram, the modern meaning 'short witty saying' is a learned borrowing and is not transparently derivable by an average B1 learner from the components.
Etymology
Epigram comes from Greek parts epi 'on' and graphein 'to write', because people once put short lines 'on' statues or stones. So an epigram today is a short, clever written line that makes you think or smile, and you can link its 'write' root to familiar words like autograph and photograph.