bucolic adjective, Also, bucolical 1. of or relating to shepherds; pastoral. 2. of, relating to, or suggesting an idyllic rural life. noun 3. a pastoral poem. 4. Archaic. a farmer; shepherd; rustic. word origin: 1525-35; < Latin būcolicus < Greek boukolikós rustic, equivalent to boukól (os) herdsman ( bou-, stem of boûs ox + -kolos keeper + -ikos -ic