/ ˈræpsədi; NAmE / noun ( pl. -ies )
1.
(often in titles) a piece of music that is full of feeling and is not regular in form :
Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsodies
2.
( formal ) the expression of great enthusiasm or happiness in speech or writing
► rhap·sodic / ræpˈsɒdɪk; NAmE -ˈsɑːdɪk/ adjective
••
WORD ORIGIN
mid 16th cent. (referring to a poem or part of a poem in ancient Greece, which could be recited at one time): via Latin from Greek rhapsōidia , from rhaptein to stitch + ōidē song, ode.