as in poetry
verse that does not rhyme and does not have a regular rhythm
The author's free verse has a unique rhythmic intensity.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of free verse
Rhyming poems, like Reed’s, have fallen out of style this century in favor of free verse.
—
Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 3 Feb. 2024
Like family feuds, squabbles among poets are too tedious to recount, but Wiman remembers being accused of commissioning too much prose, of privileging formalism over free verse, and of publishing vicious reviews and vacuous poetry.
—Casey Cep, The New Yorker, 4 Dec. 2023
The book, first published in 1927, is organized according to the calendar, with a passage of free verse that evokes the qualities and pleasures of each month, a small monochrome drawing nearby, and, on the facing page, a full-color illustration of the sort to draw fascinated attention.
—Meghan Cox Gurdon, WSJ, 16 Nov. 2023
His sentences come out as free verse, a sort of Rust Belt beat poetry.
—Popular Mechanics, 14 Apr. 2023
See All Example Sentences for free verse
Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 3 Feb. 2024
Like family feuds, squabbles among poets are too tedious to recount, but Wiman remembers being accused of commissioning too much prose, of privileging formalism over free verse, and of publishing vicious reviews and vacuous poetry.
—Casey Cep, The New Yorker, 4 Dec. 2023
The book, first published in 1927, is organized according to the calendar, with a passage of free verse that evokes the qualities and pleasures of each month, a small monochrome drawing nearby, and, on the facing page, a full-color illustration of the sort to draw fascinated attention.
—Meghan Cox Gurdon, WSJ, 16 Nov. 2023
His sentences come out as free verse, a sort of Rust Belt beat poetry.
—Popular Mechanics, 14 Apr. 2023
See All Example Sentences for free verse
Recent Examples of Synonyms for free verse
Noun
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In this novel, a Vietnamese American writer best known for his poetry draws on his own experiences as a fast-food worker.—
The New Yorker,
New Yorker,
26 May 2025
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Stanley Kubrick deliberately chose the Danube Waltz to emphasize the grace and poetry of movement in space – a floating ballet in outer space.—
David Szondy
May 25,
New Atlas,
25 May 2025
Noun
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The poems walk the line between paranoid survivalism and the vulnerability and care that fuel collective liberation.—
Isle McElroy,
Vulture,
21 May 2025
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The mirrors reflecting the best poems are slightly warped so that reading feels like staring into rippling passages.—
Terrance Hayes,
New Yorker,
19 May 2025
Noun
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On the new version of the track, Laferte opens the song in Spanish, before St. Vincent joins in English as the two take turns tackling the song’s lyrics and their own language.—
Tomás Mier,
Rolling Stone,
23 May 2025
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The Beggar’s Opera, directed by Wills with an original score by the musical mastermind Schlosberg and a new book and lyrics by playwright Kate Tarker.—
Jackson McHenry,
Vulture,
22 May 2025
Noun
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But Kantor wrote it in blank verse — little help for the script.—
Peter Bart,
Deadline,
24 Apr. 2025
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Onto the page spilled more than ten thousand lines of the richest and most resourceful blank verse in the English language, arranged into ten books in 1667, then rearranged into twelve in 1674.—
Merve Emre,
The New Yorker,
16 Dec. 2024
Noun
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For some, expecting no gay slurs in a diss song is like expecting no rhymes.—
Andre Gee,
Rolling Stone,
23 May 2025
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Read-aloud rhymes, paired with photos of real-life babies, build early language skills, while promoting tummy time.—
Pamela Brill,
Parents,
22 May 2025
Noun
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The two songs had been locked in second place on the list of the longest-running No. 1s in the history of the Hot Rap Songs chart.—
Hugh McIntyre,
Forbes.com,
24 May 2025
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However, Friday’s rendition marked the first time Bieber and SZA had performed the song together onstage.—
Daniel Kreps,
Rolling Stone,
24 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Free verse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/free%20verse. Accessed 3 Jun. 2025.
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