A poem in which certain letters of the lines, usually the first letters, form a word or message relating to the subject. Of ancient origin, examples of acrostic poems date back as far as the fourth century.
NOTE: Strictly speaking, an acrostic uses the initial letters of the lines to form the word or message, as in the Argument to Jonson's Volpone. If the medial letters are used it is a mesostich; if the final letters, a telestich. The term acrostic, however, is commonly used for all three. When both the initial and final letters are used it is called a double acrostic.
(Source: Dictionary of Poetic Terms, Pathetic.org)
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