English Explanatory Dictionary

exquisite corpse

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A collective art game in which several collaborating artists assemble a sentence or image, usually by following a prompt, or being allowed to see the only last contribution.
  2. A sentence or image created as a result of this game.

Word forms

exquisite corpse exquisite corpses

Etymology

Calque of French cadavre exquis. First coined in 1925 by surrealists André Breton, Marcel Duhamel, Jacques Prévert, and Yves Tanguy in a similar manner to consequences; the first example was constructed from the following prompt: Le cadavre exquis boira le vin nouveau (“the exquisite corpse will drink new wine”).

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