Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A lament; an Irish or Welsh melody for the harp, often, but not necessarily, of a mournful character.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun (Mus.) An Irish or Welsh melody for the harp, sometimes of a mournful character.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun An Irish or Welsh melody for the harp, sometimes of a mournful character.

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Compare Latin plangere to mourn aloud.

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Examples

  • And there she was right enough, that lovely sight enough, the girleen bawn asthore, as for days galore, of planxty Gregory.

    Finnegans Wake 2006

  • When summoned by the host's whistle, he came to the door lilting a planxty merrily, -- but when he re-entered the stable, the melody ceased, and his countenance became serious.

    International Weekly Miscellany - Volume 1, No. 5, July 29, 1850 Various

  • During the period which this required O'Grady was looking down sulkily or looking up fiercely, and striking his heel with vehemence into the sod, while Dick Dawson was whistling a planxty and eyeing his man.

    Handy Andy, Volume One A Tale of Irish Life, in Two Volumes Samuel Lover 1832

  • There’s puff for ye, begor, and planxty of it, all abound me breadth!

    Finnegans Wake 2006

Comments

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  • An Irish or Welsh melody for the harp, sometimes of a mournful character.

    October 23, 2007

  • Also often referring to a song written in honor of someone, as "Planxty Irwin", written in tribute to one Colonel Irwin.

    June 26, 2009

  • Planxty occurs twice in Finnegans Wake: first, as in example 1, in its actual meaning; second, as in example 4, as a typically Joycean play on words, meaning "plenty". I suggest an alternative to a line in the famous song of the book: "Planxty of fun at Finnegans wake."

    June 17, 2013