n.
Pronunciation: ˌ e-l ə - ' j ī - ə k, - ˌ ak also i- ' l ē -j ē - ˌ ak
Variant: also el · e · gi · a · cal \ ˌ e-l ə - ' j ī - ə -k ə l \
Function: adjective
Etymology: Late Latin elegiacus, from Greek elegeiakos, from elegeion
Date: 1542
1 a : of, relating to, or consisting of two dactylic hexameter lines the second of which lacks the arsis in the third and sixth feet b (1) : written in or consisting of elegiac couplets (2) : noted for having written poetry in such couplets c : of or relating to the period in Greece about the seventh century B.C. when poetry written in such couplets flourished
2 : of, relating to, or comprising elegy or an elegy especially : expressing sorrow often for something now past <an elegiac lament for departed youth>
– elegiac noun
– el · e · gi · a · cal · ly \ ˌ e-l ə - ' j ī - ə -k( ə -)l ē \ adverb