poet laureate

noun

Definition of poet laureatenext
as in poet

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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 poet laureate Mary Swander, a 75-year-old theater director and former state poet laureate, fondly remembers learning to canoe and swim outdoors while growing up near the water. — ABC News, 4 June 2026 Eventually, Reed suggested Vlautin take a night class from poet Gailmarie Pahmeier, the first poet laureate of Nevada. — Erik Pedersen, Oc Register, 19 May 2026 Later that year, he was named Illinois’ first honorary poet laureate. — Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork, 11 May 2026 Marilyn McPhie will talk about Ina Coolbrith, the first California poet laureate. — Elizabeth Marie Himchak, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for poet laureate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for poet laureate
  1. poet
  2. poetaster
  3. bard
  4. muse
  5. rhymester
Noun
  • Novelist and poet Wendell Berry spent his life farming his land for food and for prose.
    — Tilda Wilson, NPR, 1 Sep. 2026
  • April may be the cruelest month for poets, but September is crueler for stock traders.
    — Tobias Burns, CNBC, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of poet
Noun
  • 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, 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
Definition of poetaster
Noun
  • Before it was written down, bards recited the adventures of Odysseus and the Greeks orally.
    — Margherita Bassi, Popular Science, 19 Aug. 2026
  • Nolan sets the tone by opening with a bard (Travis Scott) beginning to tell the tale of the fall of Troy—at least the idealized heroic version that the bard’s audiences are hungry to hear.
    — ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 1 Aug. 2026
Definition of bard
Noun
  • Rusty Chocolate Ella Bright has cemented her status as an eternal fall muse, thanks in no small part to her Off Campus success.
    — Alyssa Rotunno, InStyle, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Grace Jones has been a muse to Azzedine Alaïa, and Tracee Ellis Ross has gone from walking Thierry Mugler’s runway alongside her mother in the ’90s to being an inspiration to designers like Marc Jacobs, our 2026 Style Issue cover star.
    — Vanity Fair, Vanity Fair, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of muse
Noun
  • By contrast, the French word for scarcity, rareté, has so many acoustic kin that an English rhymester could weep, with engagé, écarté, and retardé leading the pack.
    — Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 23 May 2022
Definition of rhymester

Browse Nearby Words

poeticizing
poet laureate
poetries
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Cite this Entry

“Poet laureate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/poet%20laureate. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on poet laureate

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about poet laureate

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