poetic license

Meaning

The freedom departed from conventional rules, facts, or grammar by an artist or writer to create a desired aesthetic effect. It is often invoked when historical films or novels alter real events to make the story more compelling.

Examples

• The director took some poetic license with the historical facts to make the movie more dramatic.

  The director took some poetic license with the historical facts to make the movie more dramatic.

• While the biography is mostly accurate, the author admitted to using poetic license in the dialogue.

  While the biography is mostly accurate, the author admitted to using poetic license in the dialogue.

• Purists criticized the adaptation for taking too much poetic license with the original text.

  Purists criticized the adaptation for taking too much poetic license with the original text.

• Allowing for some poetic license, the sci-fi series still manages to feel scientifically plausible.

  Allowing for some poetic license, the sci-fi series still manages to feel scientifically plausible.

• He invoked poetic license to justify the unconventional grammar in his latest collection of sonnets.

  He invoked poetic license to justify the unconventional grammar in his latest collection of sonnets.

Common Mistakes

• ✗ The writer took a poetic license to change the ending.

  ✓ The writer took poetic license to change the ending.

  'Poetic license' is an uncountable abstract noun phrase in this context, so it does not take the indefinite article 'a'.

• ✗ She used poetic permit to rewrite the historical event.

  ✓ She used poetic license to rewrite the historical event.

  'Poetic license' is a fixed idiom; substituting 'license' with synonyms like 'permit' or 'permission' is incorrect.

Related Expressions

Practice

• The screenwriter took considerable ___ when adapting the historical biography for the big screen.

  💡 Artistic liberty to alter facts.

  Show answer

  poetic license

• Though the timeline is slightly inaccurate, we can attribute that to ___.

  💡 Creative freedom used by the author.

  Show answer

  poetic license