n.1 the basic metrical unit in a poem or verse consisting of a recurring group of lines (often four lines and usu. not more than twelve) which may or may not rhyme.
2 a group of four lines in some Greek and Latin metres.
Derivatives:
stanza'd adj. (also stanzaed) (also in comb.). stanzaic adj.
Etymology: It., standing-place, chamber, stanza, ult. f. L stare stand