poetess

noun

Definition of poetessnext
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 poetess When the Dickinson fascicles were turned over to Mabel Loomis Todd, Susan’s crucial position as primary audience for Emily’s poetry became an inconvenient and irrelevant piece of information that did not jibe with the popular image of a nineteenth-century poetess. — Via Chronicle Books, Literary Hub, 11 Dec. 2025 This work honors the fearless and unapologetic spirit of the late June Jordan, educator, writer, activist, and poetess, whose words still challenge and inspire decades after they were first written and spoken. — Lynnette Nicholas, Essence, 9 Oct. 2025 Billed as a break-dance, hip-hop supernatural fantasy, the movie stars Jeroboam Bozeman as DeRay, a legendary dancer who falls through the sky to land outside the door of Naima (Mecca Verdell), a slam poetess who is the love of his life. — Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 16 Sep. 2024 To those who know, Patti Smith, pioneering punk poetess and rock star without peer or precedent, requires no introduction. — Jem Aswad, Variety, 1 June 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for poetess
poet
Noun
  • The cosmonauts plonked down on November 19th, 1965 in the Midlands market town of Rugby, a cultural backwater best known for the sport, the school, and wartime poet Rupert Brooke, in that order.
    — Gabriel Szatan, Pitchfork, 18 Oct. 2026
  • In 1938 the poet Antonio Machado, his mother, and his brother made their way from Spain to France to escape Franco’s advancing fascist forces.
    — Colm Tóibín, The New York Review of Books, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of poet

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poetasters
poetess
poetesses
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Cite this Entry

“Poetess.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/poetess. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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