poetic justice
Synonym of poetical justiceSynonym of poetical justice (“the idea that in a literary work such as a poem, virtue should be rewarded and vice punished”).
UK/pəʊˌɛtɪk ˈd͡ʒʌstɪs/US/poʊˌɛtɪk ˈd͡ʒʌstɪs/
Meaning
2 senses(uncountable)Synonym of poetical justice (“the idea that in a literary work such as a poem, virtue should be rewarded and vice punished”).
(broadly, uncountable)The fact of someone experiencing what they deserve for their actions, especially when this happens in an ironic manner.
More definitions
- an outcome (good or bad) that is well deserved and fitting
Translations
4 languagesOrigin
From poetic + justice, a variant of poetical justice, coined by the English literary critiFrom poetic + justice, a variant of poetical justice, coined by the English literary critic Thomas Rymer (c. 1643 – 1713) in the work The Tragedies of the Last Age Consider’d and Examin’d (1678): see the quotation.
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Synonyms
4 synonymsClose in meaning
- an outcome (good or bad) that is well deserved and fitting:just desertscomeuppancecomeupance
Word family
4 related wordsLessons for this word
1 lessons- A1Countable and uncountable nouns — Because it can be uncountable