rhizoverbBeta
DictionarystanzaGroup of verse lines
noun

stanza

STAN-zuh/ˈstænzə/

A group of lines forming a section of a poem or song.

Each stanza in this poem describes a different season.

An open poetry book with two clearly separated groups of four short handwritten lines, abstract strokes not readable words.
Etymology
stanzaItalianstopping place; verse of a poem

Italian stanza originally meant a standing or stopping place. A group of verse lines was treated as a stopping place because of the pause at its end.

In context

Jonathan Ullyot10:27
the stanza which is the little you know little section of the poem you know like four lines could be eight lines
How to Close Read Poetry: Form, Nonce Structure, and Rhetorical Design

More examples

  • A blank line separates the two stanzas.
  • The song's final stanza repeats its opening words.
  • She reads the first stanza aloud to the class.

Forms

stanza · stanzas

Similar words

verse
Often names a song section; can also mean poetry generally.
couplet
Specifically two successive lines, often rhyming, rather than any group.
quatrain
Specifically a group of four lines in a poem.