poetico

Poetico is an adjective used in Italian and other Romance languages to mean “poetic” or “pertaining to poetry.” It is employed to describe language, style, or works that exhibit qualities associated with poetry, such as heightened imagery, rhythm, or lyric subject matter. In Italian, phrases like lingaggio poetico or stile poetico are common for signaling these characteristics. The word derives from Latin poēticus, itself from Greek poiētikos, based on poiein “to make” or “to create,” reflecting the classical association between poetry and creation.

In literary theory, poetico is often used to discuss the poetic aspects of a text and can be contrasted with prosaico (prosaic) to mark differences between poetic and non-poetic treatments. The term can appear in compound forms such as metapoetico (metapoetic), describing discourse about poetry or the self-reflexive treatment of poetics within a work. Outside Italian, related forms appear in Spanish poético and French poétique, carrying similar meanings.

In contemporary usage, poetico commonly conveys appreciation of lyric or evocative language and is widely used across journalism, criticism, and academic writing to characterize works with a pronounced poetic sensibility. See also: Poetics, Poem, Poetic, Poietic.