Poetic
/poʊˈɛtɪk/noun
Relating to poetry or having the qualities of poetry, especially beauty, imagination, or expressiveness.
Did you know?Its deep ancestor is the Greek verb *poiein* (“to make, create”), which also gave English *poem* and *poet*—so poetry was originally less about “pretty words” and more about the power to *fashion reality* through language.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*kwei-
“to make, build, create”
Ancient Greek
Greek
ποιεῖν (poiein)
“to make, do, create”
Ancient Greek
Greek
ποιητικός (poiētikos)
“able to make; productive; poetic”
Late Latin
Latin
poeticus
“poetic, belonging to poetry”
Middle English
English
poetic
“pertaining to poetry”
Modern English
English
poetic
“relating to poetry; imaginative or expressive in a literary way”