Shakespeare

or Shak·spere, Shake·spear

[ sheyk-speer ]

noun

1. William, the Bardthe Bard of Avon, 1564–1616, English poet and dramatist.

Shakespeare

/ ˈʃeɪkspɪə /

noun

1. ShakespeareWilliam15641616MEnglishTHEATRE: dramatistWRITING: poet William. 1564–1616, English dramatist and poet. He was born and died at Stratford-upon-Avon but spent most of his life as an actor and playwright in London. His plays with approximate dates of composition are: Henry VI, Parts I–III (1590); Richard III (1592); The Comedy of Errors (1592); Titus Andronicus (1593); The Taming of the Shrew (1593); The Two Gentlemen of Verona (1594); Love's Labour's Lost (1594); Romeo and Juliet (1594); Richard II (1595); A Midsummer Night's Dream (1595); King John (1596); The Merchant of Venice (1596); Henry IV, Parts I–II (1597); Much Ado about Nothing (1598); Henry V (1598); Julius Caesar (1599); As You Like It (1599); Twelfth Night (1599); Hamlet (1600); The Merry Wives of Windsor (1600); Troilus and Cressida (1601); All's Well that ends Well (1602); Measure for Measure (1604); Othello (1604); King Lear (1605); Macbeth (1605); Antony and Cleopatra (1606); Coriolanus (1607); Timon of Athens (1607); Pericles (1608); Cymbeline (1609); The Winter's Tale (1610); The Tempest (1611); and, possibly in collaboration with John Fletcher, Two Noble Kinsmen (1612) and Henry VIII (1612). His Sonnets, variously addressed to a fair young man and a dark lady, were published in 1609

Other Words From

• pre-Shakespeare adjective

Example Sentences

It isn’t Shakespeare, but they play it as if it were.

From Los Angeles Times

Gold, who has been deconstructing his way through the Shakespeare canon, has delivered a “Romeo + Juliet” in the form of rave.

From Los Angeles Times

Seeking refuge, Farrow moved to England with her second husband, André Previn, dyed her hair brown, worked at the Royal Shakespeare Company and had children.

From Los Angeles Times

The Oscar-nominated star said he applied for the Guildford School of Acting to impress a girl but had to prepare two pieces for the audition - one from a modern playwright and the other from Shakespeare.

From BBC

Two Australian mathematicians say they have debunked an old adage, that if given an infinite amount of time, a monkey pressing keys on a typewriter would eventually write the complete works of William Shakespeare.

From BBC