idyl

idyl (ī`dəl), short poem. The ancient idyls, especially those of Bion and Moschus, were intended as little selections in the style of such longer poems as elegies or epics. There are 10 famous idyls by the Greek Theocritus, and, since some of them dealt with pastoral or rural scenes, the term idyl came to be restricted to gently flowing, artistic pieces on rural subjects. In the 19th cent., Alfred Tennyson in his Idylls of the King used the term rather in its looser original sense than in the later restricted pastoral meaning. For idyls in their bucolic sense, see pastoral.

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idyll

 or idyl

In literature, a simple descriptive work in poetry or prose that deals with rustic life or pastoral scenes or suggests a mood of peace and contentment. Idylls have taken varying forms, from the eclogue to the long narrative poem treating an epic, romantic, or tragic theme (such as Alfred Tennyson's “Idylls of the King”).

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idyll (sometimes US), idyl

1. a poem or prose work describing an idealized rural life, pastoral scenes, etc.

2. any simple narrative or descriptive piece in poetry or prose

3. a piece of music with a calm or pastoral character