epicede

WOTD - 6 June 2007    

English

Etymology

From Latin epicēdīum, from Ancient Greek ἐπικήδειον, neuter singular form of ἐπικήδειος, from ἐπί "upon" + κῆδος "care".

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈɛpɪsiːd/

• Audio (US)

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Noun

epicede (plural epicedes or epicedia)

1. An elegy; an ode to someone deceased.
   • 1875, Algernon Charles Swinburne, George Chapman: A Critical Essay, Page 139

     "This epicede, longer and more ornate than that issued two years before on Prince Henry, is neither much worse nor much better in substance and in style."

Synonyms

• elegy, epicedium