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Elegy vs. Eulogy
Both elegy and eulogy may be used about writing or speech in remembrance of a person who has passed away, and this semantic overlap creates the potential for confusion. Elegy (which may be traced to the Greek word elegos, “song of mourning”) commonly refers to a song or poem lamenting one who is dead; the word may also refer somewhat figuratively to a nostalgic poem, or to a kind of musical composition. While eulogy is also commonly found referring to words about the deceased, its basic meaning, both in English and in the Greek language from which it was borrowed, is “praise.” Formed from the Greek roots eu “good” and logos “speech,” a eulogy is an encomium given for one who is either living or dead. If you are praising your partner’s unsurpassed beauty or commending the virtues of the deceased at a funeral, you are delivering a eulogy; if you are composing a lamenting reminiscence about a person who has long since passed, you are writing an elegy.
Examples of elegy in a Sentence
Jesse David Fox, Vulture, 1 Apr. 2024
Schmuhl’s chapter on Churchill’s experience as President Dwight Eisenhower’s guest, starting in 1953, reads like an elegy, since the jet age was emerging, and quicker diplomatic trips became the standard.
—Danny Heitman, The Christian Science Monitor, 25 July 2024
Shades of Thornton Wilder and John Steinbeck flicker in this elegy to the down and out, the dreamers and the sinners who lose everything, even their sense of themselves.
—Karen D'souza, The Mercury News, 3 Aug. 2024
In some places, The Return resembles an elegy; in others, a detective story.
—Robert F. Worth, Foreign Affairs, 11 Apr. 2017
See all Example Sentences for elegy 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'elegy.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Elegy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/elegy. Accessed 8 Oct. 2024.
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elegy
noun
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