VISUAL DICTIONARY

VISUAL DICTIONARY

beauty |ˈbyoōtē|

noun ( pl. -ties)

1 a combination of qualities, such as shape, color, or form, that pleases the aesthetic senses, esp. the sight : I was struck by her beauty | an area of outstanding natural beauty.

• a combination of qualities that pleases the intellect or moral sense.

• [as adj. ] denoting something intended to make a woman more attractive : beauty products | beauty treatment.

2 a beautiful or pleasing thing or person, in particular

• a beautiful woman.

• an excellent specimen or example of something : the fish was a beauty, around 14 pounds.

• ( the beauties of) the pleasing or attractive features of something : the beauties of the Pennsylvania mountains.

• [in sing. ] the best feature or advantage of something : the beauty of keeping cats is that they don't tie you down.

PHRASES

beauty is in the eye of the beholder proverb beauty cannot be judged objectively, for what one person finds beautiful or admirable may not appeal to another.

beauty is only skin-deep proverb a pleasing appearance is not a guide to character.

ORIGIN Middle English : from Old French beaute, based on Latin bellus ‘beautiful, fine.’

Christ.mas tree: A real or artificial evergreen tree set up and decorated with lights and ornaments as part of Christmas celebrations.

avant-garde |ˈavänt ˈgärd; ˌavä n |

noun (usu. the avant-garde)

new and unusual or experimental ideas, esp. in the arts, or the people introducing them : works by artists of the Russian avant-garde.

adjective

favoring or introducing such new ideas : a controversial avant-garde composer.

DERIVATIVES

avant-gardism |-ˌdizəm| |ˈˈɑˈvɑn ˈgɑrˈdɪzəm| noun

avant-gardist |-dist| |ˈˈɑˈvɑn ˈgɑrdəst| noun

ORIGIN late Middle English (denoting the vanguard of an army): from French, literally ‘vanguard.’ Current senses date from the early 20th cent.

X.cep.tio.nal D.-Sainz: [EXCEPTIONAL DESIGNS] A Company created for your visual display needs and consultant of all aspects of visual presentation.

Extremely proud to be in this business with Degree in visual presentation and space of design; twenty years of experience from many department stores, JC Penney, Macy’s, Gap Inc. , Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus.

With knowledge of floor plans, trained in sign making logos and graphics, cutting and working with foam-core. Computer skills include PC and Mac systems with the knowledge of Microsoft office, intranet, photo shop, and power point.

Fluent in Spanish.

mannequin |ˈmanikən|

noun

a dummy used to display clothes in a store window.

• chiefly historical a young woman or man employed to show clothes to customers.

ORIGIN mid 18th cent.: from French, from Dutch (see manikin ).

USAGE In English usage, the word mannequin occurs much more frequently than any of its relatives manakin, manikin, and mannikin. The source for all four words is the Middle Dutch mannekijn (modern Dutch manneken) ‘little man,’ ‘little doll.’ Mannequin is the French spelling from this Dutch source. One of its French meanings, dating from about 1830, is ‘a young woman hired to model clothes’ (even though the word means ‘little man ’). This sense—still current, but rare in English—first appeared in 1902. The far more common sense of ‘a life-size jointed figure or dummy used for displaying clothes’ is first recorded in 1939. Manikin has had the sense ‘little man’ (often contemptuous) since the mid 16th century, when it was sometimes spelled manakin (as it appeared in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, as a term of abuse). Manikin’s sense of ‘an artist’s lay figure’ also dates from the mid 16th century (first recorded with the Dutch spelling manneken). To confuse matters further, in modern usage the words manakin and mannikin refer to birds of two unrelated families. The history of these bird names is somewhat obscure. Manakin may have come from the Portuguese manaquim ‘mannikin,’ a variant of manequim ‘mannequin.’ Mannikin may have come directly from the source of the Portuguese words, the Middle Dutch mannekijn.

visual |ˈvi zh oōəl|

adjective

of or relating to seeing or sight : visual perception.

noun (usu. visuals)

a picture, piece of film, or display used to illustrate or accompany something.

DERIVATIVES

visually |ˈvɪʒ(ə)wəli| |ˈvɪʒəli| adverb

ORIGIN late Middle English (originally describing a beam imagined to proceed from the eye and make vision possible): from late Latin visualis, from Latin visus ‘sight,’ from videre ‘to see.’ The current noun sense dates from the 1950s.

silk |silk|

noun

a fine, strong, soft, lustrous fiber produced by silkworms in making cocoons and collected to make thread and fabric.

• a similar fiber spun by some other insect larvae and by most spiders.

• [often as adj. ] thread or fabric made from the fiber produced by the silkworm : a silk shirt.

• ( silks) garments made from such fabric, esp. as worn by a jockey in the colors of a particular horse owner.

• Riding a cover worn over a riding hat made from a silklike fabric.

• Brit., informal a Queen's (or King's) Counsel. [ORIGIN: so named because of the right accorded to wear a gown made of this cloth.]

• any silklike threads that grow in plants, such as at the end of an ear of corn or in a milkweed pod.

DERIVATIVES

silklike |ˈsilkˌlīk| |ˈsɪlkˈlaɪk| adjective

ORIGIN Old English sioloc, seolec, from late Latin sericum, neuter of Latin sericus, based on Greek Sēres, the name given to the inhabitants of the Far Eastern countries from which silk first came overland to Europe.

ribbon |ˈribən|

noun

a long, narrow strip of fabric, used esp. for tying something or for decoration : the tiny pink ribbons in her hair | cut four lengths of ribbon.

• a strip of fabric of a special color or design awarded as a prize or worn to indicate the holding of an honor, esp. a small multicolored piece of ribbon worn in place of the medal it represents : old horse show ribbons and rosettes.

• a long, narrow strip of something : slice the peppers into ribbons lengthwise.

• a narrow band of inked material wound on a spool and forming the inking agent in some typewriters and computer printers.

verb [ intrans. ]

extend or move in a long narrow strip like a ribbon : miles of concrete ribboned behind the bus.

PHRASES

cut a (or the) ribbon perform an opening ceremony, typically by formally cutting a ribbon across the entrance to somewhere.

cut (or tear) something to ribbons cut (or tear) something so badly that only ragged strips remain. • figurative damage something severely : the country has seen its economy torn to ribbons by recession.

DERIVATIVES

ribboned |ˈrɪbənd| adjective

ribbonlike |-ˌlīk| adjective

ORIGIN early 16th cent.: variant of riband . The French spelling ruban was also frequent in the 16th–18th centuries.

presentation |ˌprēˌzenˈtā sh ən; ˌprezən-; ˌprēzən-|

noun

1 the proffering or giving of something to someone, esp. as part of a formal ceremony : the presentation of certificates to new members | the trophy presentations.

• the manner or style in which something is given, offered, or displayed : the presentation of foods is designed to stimulate your appetite.

• a formal introduction of someone, esp. at court.

• the official submission of something for consideration in a law court : the presentation of the bankruptcy petition.

• chiefly historical the action or right of formally proposing a candidate for a church benefice or other position : the Earl of Pembroke offered Herbert the presentation of the living of Bremerton.

• a demonstration or display of a product or idea : a sales presentation.

• an exhibition or theatrical performance.

2 Medicine the position of a fetus in relation to the cervix at the time of delivery : breech presentation.

• the coming forward of a patient for initial examination and diagnosis : all patients in this group were symptomatic at initial presentation.

3 ( Presentation of Christ) another term for Candlemas .

DERIVATIVES

ORIGIN late Middle English : via Old French from late Latin praesentatio(n-), from Latin praesentare ‘place before’ (see present 2 ).

exceptional |ikˈsep sh ənəl|

adjective

unusual; not typical : crimes of exceptional callousness and cruelty.

• unusually good; outstanding : a pepper offering exceptional flavor and juiciness.

• (of a child) mentally or physically disabled so as to require special schooling : helping parents of exceptional children.

DERIVATIVES

USAGE See usage at exceptionable .

seasonal |ˈsēzənəl|

adjective

of, relating to, or characteristic of a particular season of the year : a selection of seasonal fresh fruit.

• fluctuating or restricted according to the season or time of year : there are companies whose markets are seasonal | seasonal rainfall.

DERIVATIVES

seasonally |ˈsizn=əli| |ˈsiznəli| adverb

USAGE See usage at seasonable .

flower |ˈflou(-ə)r|

noun Botany

the seed-bearing part of a plant, consisting of reproductive organs (stamens and carpels) that are typically surrounded by a brightly colored corolla (petals) and a green calyx (sepals).

parts of a flower

• a brightly colored and conspicuous example of such a part of a plant together with its stalk, typically used with others as a decoration or gift : I stopped to buy Bridget some flowers.

• the state or period in which a plant's flowers have developed and opened : the roses were just coming into flower.

verb [ intrans. ]

(of a plant) produce flowers; bloom : these daisies can flower as late as October.

• figurative be in or reach an optimum stage of development; develop fully and richly : it is there that the theory of deconstruction has flowered most extravagantly | [as n. ] ( flowering) the flowering of Viennese intellectual life.

• [ trans. ] induce (a plant) to produce flowers.

PHRASES

the flower of 1 the finest individuals out of a number of people or things : the flower of college track athletes. 2 the period of optimum development : a young policeman in the flower of his life gunned down.

DERIVATIVES

flowerless |ˈflaʊ(ə)rləs| adjective

flowerlike |-ˌlīk| |ˈflaʊ(ə)rˈlaɪk| adjective

ORIGIN Middle English flour, from Old French flour, flor, from Latin flos, flor-. The original spelling was no longer in use by the late 17th cent. except in its specialized sense [ground grain] (see flour ).

retail |ˈrēˌtāl|

noun

the sale of goods to the public in relatively small quantities for use or consumption rather than for resale : [as adj. ] the product's retail price.

adverb

being sold in such a way : it is not yet available retail.

1 |ˈrēˌtāl| sell (goods) to the public in such a way : the difficulties in retailing the new products.

• [ intrans. ] ( retail at/for) (of goods) be sold in this way for (a specified price) : the product retails for around $20.

2 |ˈrēˌtāl; riˈtāl| recount or relate details of (a story or event) to others : his inimitable way of retailing a diverting anecdote.

DERIVATIVES

retailer |rəˈteɪlər| |riˈteɪlər| noun

ORIGIN late Middle English : from Anglo-Norman French retaille ‘a piece cut off,’ from retaillier, from re- (expressing intensive force) + tailler ‘to cut.’

design |dəˈzīn|

noun

1 a plan or drawing produced to show the look and function or workings of a building, garment, or other object before it is built or made : he has just unveiled his design for the new museum.

• the art or action of conceiving of and producing such a plan or drawing : good design can help the reader understand complicated information | the cloister is of late twelfth century design.

• an arrangement of lines or shapes created to form a pattern or decoration : pottery with a lovely blue and white design.

2 purpose, planning, or intention that exists or is thought to exist behind an action, fact, or material object : the appearance of design in the universe.

verb [ trans. ]

decide upon the look and functioning of (a building, garment, or other object), typically by making a detailed drawing of it : a number of architectural students were designing a factory | [as adj. with submodifier ] ( designed) specially designed buildings.

• (often be designed) do or plan (something) with a specific purpose or intention in mind : [ trans. ] the tax changes were designed to stimulate economic growth.

See note at intend .

PHRASES

by design as a result of a plan; intentionally : I became a presenter by default rather than by design.

have designs on aim to obtain (something desired), typically in a secret and dishonest way : he suspected her of having designs on the family fortune.

ORIGIN late Middle English (as a verb in the sense [to designate] ): from Latin designare ‘to designate,’ reinforced by French désigner. The noun is via French from Italian.