| source : web1913 | Idyl \I"dyl\, n. [L. idyllium, Gr. ?, fr. ? form; literally, a little form of image: cf. F. idylle. See {Idol}.] A short poem; properly, a short pastoral poem; as, the idyls of Theocritus; also, any poem, especially a narrative or descriptive poem, written in an eleveted and highly finished style; also, by extension, any artless and easily flowing description, either in poetry or prose, of simple, rustic life, of pastoral scenes, and the like. [Written also {idyll}.] Wordsworth's solemn-thoughted idyl. --Mrs. Browning. His [Goldsmith's] lovely idyl of the Vicar's home. --F. Harrison. | source : wn | idyll n 1: an episode of such pastoral or romantic charm as to qualify as the subject of a poetic idyll 2: a musical composition that evokes rural life [syn: {pastorale}, {pastoral}] 3: a short descriptive poem of rural or pastoral life [syn: {eclogue}, {bucolic}]