\Ep"i*gram\, n. [L. epigramma, fr. Gr. ? inscription,
epigram, fr. ? to write upon, 'epi` upon + ? to write: cf. F.
['e]pigramme. See {Graphic}.]
1. A short poem treating concisely and pointedly of a single
   thought or event. The modern epigram is so contrived as to
   surprise the reader with a witticism or ingenious turn of
   thought, and is often satirical in character.
         Dost thou think I care for a satire or an epigram?
                                               --Shak.
Note: Epigrams were originally inscription on tombs, statues,
      temples, triumphal arches, etc.
2. An effusion of wit; a bright thought tersely and sharply
   expressed, whether in verse or prose.
3. The style of the epigram.
         Antithesis, i. e., bilateral stroke, is the soul of
         epigram in its later and technical signification.
                                               --B. Cracroft.