Shakespearean sonnet

noun

1. a sonnet form used by Shakespeare and having the rhyme scheme abab, cdcd, efef, gg.

Shakespearean sonnet

noun

1. a sonnet form developed in 16th-century England and employed by Shakespeare, having the rhyme scheme a b a b c d c d e f e f g g Also calledElizabethan sonnetEnglish sonnet

Word History and Origins

Origin of Shakespearean sonnet¹

First recorded in 1900–05