epigram

UK: /ˈɛpɪgræm/ US: /ˈɛpɪˌgræm/ ,(ep′i gram′)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

ep•i•gram /ˈɛpɪˌgræm/   n. [countable]

1. a short and witty saying or poem:
   One of his favorite epigrams is "A picture is worth a thousand words.''

See -gram-.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

ep•i•gram  (ep′i gram′), n. 

1. any witty, ingenious, or pointed saying tersely expressed.
2. epigrammatic expression:
   Oscar Wilde had a genius for epigram.
3. Literature, Poetry a short, often satirical poem dealing concisely with a single subject and usually ending with a witty or ingenious turn of thought.

• Greek epígramma inscription, epigram. See epi-, -gram¹
• Latin epigramma
• late Middle English 1400–50

Synonyms

• 1. witticism, quip, bon mot.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

epigram / ˈɛpɪˌɡræm/ noun

1. a witty, often paradoxical remark, concisely expressed
2. a short, pungent, and often satirical poem, esp one having a witty and ingenious ending

Etymology: 15th Century: from Latin epigramma, from Greek: inscription, from epigraphein to write upon, from graphein to write

ˌepigramˈmatic, ˌepigramˈmatical adjective

ˌepigramˈmatically adverb