versify

English

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *wert-

Proto-Indo-European *-eti

Proto-Indo-European *-etor

Proto-Indo-European *wértetor

Proto-Italic *wertō

Latin vertō

Proto-Indo-European *-tus

Proto-Italic *-tus

Latin -tus

Latin versus

Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁-

Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁k-

Proto-Indo-European *-yéti

Proto-Indo-European *dʰh₁kyéti

Proto-Italic *θakjō

Proto-Italic *fakjō

Latin faciō

Latin versificārelbor.

Old French versifierbor.

Middle English versifien

English versify

From Middle English versifien, from Old French versifier, learned borrowing from Latin versificāre (“versify”), from versus (see verse) + faciō (“make”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈvɜː(ɹ)sɪfaɪ/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

Verb

versify (third-person singular simple present versifies, present participle versifying, simple past and past participle versified)

1. (ambitransitive) to make or compose verses
   • 1693, Decimus Junius Juvenalis, John Dryden, transl., “[The Satires of Decimus Junius Juvenalis.] The First Satyr”, in The Satires of Decimus Junius Juvenalis. Translated into English Verse. […] Together with the Satires of Aulus Persius Flaccus. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson […], →OCLC:

     I'll versify in spite, and do my best.

2. (transitive) to tell in verse; deal with in verse form
3. (transitive) to turn (prose) into poetry; rewrite in verse form

Derived terms

• versifiable
• versifier

Translations

ambitransitive: to make or compose verses

• Arabic: نَظَمَ (naẓama)
• Armenian: քերթել (hy) (kʻertʻel)
• Bulgarian: пиша стихове (piša stihove)
• Czech: veršovat impf
• Georgian: ლექსების წერა (leksebis c̣era)
• Middle English: versifien
• Portuguese: versar (pt), versejar, versificar (pt)
• Romanian: versifica (ro)
• Ukrainian: віршува́ти impf (viršuváty)

transitive: to tell in verse; deal with in verse form

• Czech: zveršovat pf, veršovat impf, zbásnit pf
• Georgian: ლექსების წერა (leksebis c̣era)
• Portuguese: versar (pt), versejar, versificar (pt)
• Ukrainian: віршува́ти impf (viršuváty)

transitive: to turn prose into poetry; rewrite in verse form

• Czech: veršovat impf, zveršovat pf, zbásnit pf
• Georgian: გალექსვა (galeksva)
• German: versifizieren (de)
• Portuguese: versar (pt), versejar, versificar (pt)
• Swedish: versifiera (sv)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Serbo-Croatian: ^{(please verify)} stihotvoriti