0 a person who has been given a very high honour because of their ability in a subject of study:
a Nobel laureate
1 a person who has been given an important job or a prize because of an achievement in a particular subject:
a Nobel laureate
Like a poet laureate, this professor often had to write poems and speeches for festive occasions, such as the king's birthday or the university's birthday.
It is not only poet laureates who talk of exceptionality, transcendence, genius and the like.
The best way to congratulate these laureates is to express our sincere hope that their work may contribute to shaping the future of the discipline.
A poet laureate should not be appointed for now and the post should be held in abeyance.
There has been much talk of the appointment of the next poet laureate.
A famous poet laureate wrote a book about it.
Sadly, that does not happen these days, with landfill tax legislation and the aggregates levy for example, although the poet laureate might address himself to that.
I am sure many budding poet laureates will sleep happily in their beds tonight knowing that if they ever hold that position their private lives will not be exposed.