Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural poets laureate or poet laureates
Date: 15th century
1 : a poet honored for achievement in his or her art
2 a : a poet appointed for life by an English sovereign as a member of the royal household and formerly expected to compose poems for court and national occasions b : a poet appointed annually by the U.S. Library of Congress as a consultant and typically involved in the promotion of poetry
3 : one regarded by a country or region as its most eminent or representative poet