stanza Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a fixed number of lines of verse forming a unit of a poem

WordNet

Stan"za noun
Etymology
It. stanza a room, habitation, a stanza, i. e., a stop, fr. L. stans, p.pr. of stare to stand. See Stand, and cf. Estancia, Stance, Stanchion.
Wordforms
plural Stanzas
Definitions
  1. A number of lines or verses forming a division of a song or poem, and agreeing in meter, rhyme, number of lines, etc., with other divisions; a part of a poem, ordinarily containing every variation of measure in that poem; a combination or arrangement of lines usually recurring; whether like or unlike, in measure.
    Horace confines himself strictly to one sort of verse, or stanza, in every ode. Dryden.
  2. (Arch.) An apartment or division in a building; a room or chamber.

Webster 1913