picture Hear it!

Jump To: synonymsSynonyms · examplesUsage Examples · quotesQuotes · linkLink/Cite
Also found in: idiomsAH Idiom Dictionary
picture definition

pic·ture (pikc̸hər)

noun

    1. an image or likeness of an object, person, or scene produced on a flat surface, esp. by painting, drawing, or photography
    2. a printed reproduction of this
  1. anything closely resembling or strikingly typifying something else; perfect likeness or image to be the picture of one's mother, the picture of health
  2. anything regarded as having the compositional beauty of a painting or drawing
  3. a mental image or impression; idea
  4. a vivid or detailed description a picture of the times
  5. all the facts or conditions of an event, collectively; situation
  6. tableau
  7. film ()
  8. the image on a television screen

Etymology: ME pycture < L pictura < pictus, pp. of pingere, to paint

transitive verb pictured -·tured, picturing -·tur·ing

  1. to make a picture of by painting, drawing, photographing, etc.
  2. to make visible; show clearly; reflect
  3. to describe or explain
  4. to form a mental picture or impression of; imagine
picture Idioms

in (or out of) the picture

considered (or not considered) as involved in a situation

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Alternate definitions:
picture Synonyms

picture

n.

  1. A scene before the eye or the imagination

    spectacle, panorama, pageant; see view 1.

  2. A human likeness

    portrait, representation, photo, photograph, snapshot, cartoon, image, effigy, icon, statue, statuette, figure, figurine, close-up.

  3. A pictorial representation

    illustration, engraving, etching, woodcut, cut, outline, cartoon, hologram, draft, crayon sketch, pastel, water color, aquarelle, poster, graph, oil, mezzotint, chart, map, plot, trademark, mosaic, blueprint, tapestry, showcard, advertisement, aquatint, aquatone, facsimile, animation, tracing, photograph, lithograph, zinc etching, photoengraving, collotype, halftone, rotogravure, print, ad*, pix*, still*, commercial*; see also design 1, drawing 2, painting 1.

    Types of pictures, as works of art, include: landscape, seascape, cityscape, farmscape, snowscape, skyscape, genre painting, chiaroscuro, historical work, religious work, madonna, ascension, annunciation, Last Judgment, crucifixion; birth of Christ, battle scene, triumphal entry, detail, veronica, vernicle, icon, illumination, cameo, miniature, portrait, silhouette, self-portrait, illustration, danse macabre (French), nude, fresco, mural, collage, pin-up, figure, still life, center spread, animal picture, hunting print, fashion plate, diorama, panorama, photomural, photomontage, papier collé (French).

  4. A motion picture

    cinema, film, cartoon; see movie.

  5. A description

    depiction, delineation, portrayal; see description 1.

  6. *Adequate comprehension; usually with the

    idea, understanding, survey; see knowledge 1.

in the picture*
out of the picture*

immaterial, not considered, unimportant; see irrelevant.


picture

v.

  1. To depict

    sketch, delineate, portray; see draw 2.

  2. To imagine

    portray, create, conceive; see imagine 1.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

picture Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • paint: It's like having two artists painting the same picture.

Preposition: on

  • left: Head through the gateway picture on left and continue up the road.

Adjective modifier

  • big: However, he devotes the book to giving the big picture.

Modifies a noun

  • gallery: We also have pictures of some of them in our hedge picture gallery.

Noun used with modifier

  • motion: Original music will be composed by Terry Davies who will also adapt musical themes from the motion picture composed by Danny Elfman.
picture usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

picture quotes

Omnis mundi creatura Quasi liber et pictura Nobis est, et speculum. Each creature of the world Is as a book, a picture, And a mirror to us.

-Alan of Lille also known as  'Alanus de Insulis'

Perhaps the artist who seeks dignity above all in his 'historia', ought to represent very few figures; for as paucity of words imparts majesty to a prince, provided histhoughts and orders are understood, so the presence of only the strictly necessary numbers of bodies confers dignity on a picture.

-Alberti, Leon Battista

That is the best part of beauty, which a picture cannot express.

-Bacon, Francis,Viscount St Albans

picture quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Link to this page:

Cite this page:

MLA Style

"picture." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 4 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/picture>

APA Style

picture. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 4th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/picture

Comments:

Please or Register to post a comment