cin|quain

cin|quain «sihng KAYN», noun. Rare.

1. a poem of five lines having respectively two, four, six, eight, and two syllables, a form originated by the American poet, Adelaide Crapsey. Example: These be Three silent things The falling snow…the hour Before the dawn…the mouth of one Just dead.

2. a collection or company of five.

╂[< French cinquain < cinq; see etym. under cinque (Cf. ↑cinque)]