Rhap"so*dy (?), n.; pl. Rhapsodies (#). [F. rhapsodie, L. rhapsodia, Gr. , fr. a rhapsodist; to sew, stith together, unite + a song. See Ode.]
1.
A recitation or song of a rhapsodist; a portion of an epic poem adapted for recitation, or usually recited, at one time; hence, a division of the Iliad or the Odyssey; -- called also a book.
2.
A disconnected series of sentences or statements composed under excitement, and without dependence or natural connection; rambling composition.
"A
rhapsody of words."
Shak. "A
rhapsody of tales."
Locke.
3. Mus.
A composition irregular in form, like an improvisation; as, Liszt's "Hungarian Rhapsodies."
© Webster 1913.