haiku

noun

Definition of haikunext
as in tanka

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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 haiku Whether from the literary rules of a haiku or the development of ferns, constraint can be a generator of form. — Jacob S. Suissa, The Conversation, 25 Nov. 2025 Best of all are terrace bathtubs crafted from rocks or hinoki cypress wood, filled with hot spring onsen water—plus haiku-inspiring valley views. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 26 Feb. 2026 Woodland features around 25,000 titles of poetry, small press literature, handmade works and the largest collection of haiku in North America. — Hannah Kirby, jsonline.com, 28 Jan. 2026 Today, this is the basis of the Japanese sense of the seasons, which has also had a great influence on literature in Japan, especially with regard to haiku, the 17-syllable Japanese poem that has attained international popularity. — Caleb Jacobs, The Drive, 9 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for haiku
Recent Examples of Synonyms for haiku
  1. tanka
  2. senryu
  3. sonnet
  4. poetry
  5. epigram
  6. elegy
  7. psalm
  8. ode
Noun
  • Matsumoto worked with collaborators to translate the book of tanka poems so everyone in her family could read them.
    — Myrna Petlicki, Chicago Tribune, 16 Apr. 2026
  • Each photo is combined with a tanka (a five-line, 31-syllable poem) written through the lens of a 10-year-old girl encountering the Jews for the first time, composed by poet Hiroko Yamagata.
    — Josh Hasten, Sun Sentinel, 21 Sep. 2022
Definition of tanka
Noun
  • The construction is the same -- three lines, 17 syllables, with five syllables in the first line, seven syllables in the second line and five syllables on the third line -- but the tone and subject matter of a senryu is different.
    — Mary Colurso | [email protected], al, 19 Nov. 2020
  • The event is open to anyone interested in learning about the modern haiku, senryu and haibun types of poetry, focusing on contemporary free verse forms, not the familiar five-seven-five-syllable structure.
    — Carole Goldberg, courant.com, 7 Aug. 2019
Definition of senryu
Noun
  • In his sonnets, Shakespeare pairs was with glass, and warmed with disarmed.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 25 June 2026
  • Tech was even still cool in late 2022 when OpenAI released ChatGPT and everyone started giddily re-doing Taylor Swift lyrics as Shakespearean sonnets.
    — Steven Zeitchik, HollywoodReporter, 25 June 2026
Definition of sonnet
Noun
  • The title character disdains the common folk, and the play’s complicated political discussion and harsh, jagged poetry aren’t what most picnicking playgoers are after.
    — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 1 July 2026
  • Not enough people look back to the ancient world, which is more associated with epic poetry about gods and war than prose compositions.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 30 June 2026
Definition of poetry
Noun
  • By greatly expanding the dimensions of his images, with their muted palettes, tight cropping, found symmetries, and laconic wit, had the maestro of the photographic epigram betrayed his subtractive aesthetic?
    — James Quandt, Artforum, 2 June 2026
  • Johnson is the author of the epigrams, but Boswell is very much the co-author.
    — David Frum, The Atlantic, 27 May 2026
Definition of epigram
Noun
  • Not long after, his elegy was answered, as neotraditional sounds have made a big comeback on country radio, led by artists like Zach Top and Midland.
    — Marissa R. Moss, Rolling Stone, 28 June 2026
  • Ashura processions are usually dramatic affairs, with chanters singing elegies or dirges dedicated to Hussein, while audience members beat their chests and engage in displays of mourning.
    — Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 22 June 2026
Definition of elegy
Noun
  • Take The Music Lesson, a study of a young woman playing the virginal, closely watched by a gentleman, which Graham-Dixon reads as a depiction of Collegiants chastely performing and singing psalms.
    — Clare Bucknell, Harpers Magazine, 23 June 2026
  • Over the course of Gregory Orr’s long career, his poems have become increasingly incantatory, more and more like chants or psalms, repeating, reformulating, reaching for the edges of the same rich metaphors.
    — Craig Morgan Teicher, Literary Hub, 1 June 2026
Definition of psalm
Noun
  • To mark the occasion of America’s centennial, the people of Taunton, Massachusetts, invited James Russell Lowell—distinguished poet, founding editor of The Atlantic—to compose and read an ode for the Fourth of July.
    — Jake Lundberg, The Atlantic, 3 July 2026
  • The sleek property features several odes to San Diego landmarks, starting with the heated saltwater pool inspired by the Balboa Park Lily Pond and gazebo honoring the Botanical Building.
    — Catherine Garcia, TheWeek, 2 July 2026
Definition of ode

Browse Nearby Words

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hail
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Cite this Entry

“Haiku.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/haiku. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

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Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about haiku

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