Etymology: < (i) Middle French poetique (French poétique ) of or relating to poetry (1377; 1372–4 in art poetique ), resembling or reminiscent of poetry (early 16th cent.), and its etymon (ii) classical Latin poēticus creative, belonging or suited to poetry, poetic, described in poetry < ancient Greek ποητικός , ποιητικός creative, productive, of or belonging to poets or poetry, in Byzantine Greek also celebrated in poetry < ποητής , ποιητής poet n. + -ικός -ic suffix. Compare Catalan poètic (a1399), Spanish poético (a1250 in arte poética ), Italian poetico (1308), also German poetisch (1480). Compare earlier poetical adj. With use as noun in sense B. 1 compare post-classical Latin poeticus (late 2nd cent. in Tertullian), ancient Greek ποιητικός poet. With use as noun in sense B. 2 compare classical Latin poētica, poēticē and its model ancient Greek ποιητική the poetic art, poetry, use as noun (short for ποιητικὴ τέχνη) of feminine of ποιητικός; also French poétique (1637; also 1599 in Middle French in uncertain sense), Spanish poética (1580 with reference to Horace; late 14th cent. in sense ‘activity of poetry’), Italian poetica (a1550), also German Poetik (mid 17th cent.).In poetic licence n. at Compounds after Middle French, French licence poétique (c1480) or its model classical Latin licentia poetica (also licentia poetarum ); compare also Hellenistic Greek ποιητικὴ ἐξουσία , Spanish licençia poética (1437). With sense poetics n. compare earlier poetry n. 4.