sculpture

American  

[skuhlp-cher] / ˈskʌlp tʃər /

noun

1. the art of carving, modeling, welding, or otherwise producing figurative or abstract works of art in three dimensions, as in relief, intaglio, or in the round.

2. such works of art collectively.

3. an individual piece of such work.

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verb (used with object)

sculptures, present (3rd person singular) sculptured, past participle, past sculpturing present participle

1. to carve, model, weld, or otherwise produce (a piece of sculpture).

2. to produce a portrait or image of in this way; represent in sculpture.

3. Physical Geography. to change the form of (the land surface) by erosion.

verb (used without object)

sculptures, present (3rd person singular) sculptured, past participle, past sculpturing present participle

1. to work as a sculptor.

sculpture British  

/ ˈskʌlptʃə /

noun

1. the art of making figures or designs in relief or the round by carving wood, moulding plaster, etc, or casting metals, etc

2. works or a work made in this way

3. ridges or indentations as on a shell, formed by natural processes

4. the gradual formation of the landscape by erosion

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verb

1. (also intr) to carve, cast, or fashion (stone, bronze, etc) three dimensionally

2. to portray (a person, etc) by means of sculpture

3. to form in the manner of sculpture, esp to shape (landscape) by erosion

4. to decorate with sculpture

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonsculpturally
  adverb
• nonsculptural
  adjective
• unsculptural
  adjective
• sculptural
  adjective
• resculpture
  verb (used with object)
• sculpturally
  adverb

Conjugated Forms

Present

• have sculptured
  perfect
• has sculptured
  perfect 3rd person singular
• has been sculpturing
  perfect progressive 3rd person singular
• am sculpturing
  progressive 1st person singular
• are sculpturing
  progressive
• is sculpturing
  progressive 3rd person singular
• have been sculpturing
  perfect progressive
• sculptures
  singular 3rd person
• sculpturing
  participle

Past

• had sculptured
  perfect
• was sculpturing
  progressive singular
• had been sculpturing
  perfect progressive
• were sculpturing
  progressive plural
• sculptured
  simple
• sculptured
  participle

Future

• will sculpture
  simple
• will have sculptured
  perfect
• will have been sculpturing
  perfect progressive
• will be sculpturing
  progressive

Etymology

Origin of sculpture

1350–1400; Middle English (noun) < Latin sculptūra, equivalent to sculpt ( us ) (past participle of sculpere to carve) + -ūra -ure

Explanation

Sculpture is a type of artwork that's two- or three-dimensional, so you can see it from different sides. You can make sculpture from clay, marble, wood, and even mashed potatoes, though the potato kind might not make it into an art museum. From the Latin sculpere "to carve," sculpture often is carved out of a block of wood, stone, or other material. Statues and outdoor artworks are one type of sculpture, and they are freestanding — you can walk around them, under them, or even over them. Other types are carved into walls, with the figures or objects sticking out from a flat surface. Artists called sculptors use soft materials, metal, and even ice and common objects like cars and cans to make sculpture.

Example Sentences

Sculpture, installation art, photography, and drawing with ink and charcoal all appealed to him.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2026

So, too, does “Sèvres Extraordinaire! Sculpture From 1740 Until Today”—a chronological show comprising more than 160 ceramic artworks at the Bard Graduate Center.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 1, 2025

Last year, it unveiled its Sculpture in the Park exhibition featuring works by artists such as Sarah Lucas, Permindar Kaur, Larry Achiampong, Helen Chadwick and Erika Verzutti.

From BBC • Apr. 29, 2025

While we were in New Orleans, we visited one of our favorite places, the Besthoff Sculpture Garden at the New Orleans Museum of Art.

From Slate • Apr. 17, 2025

Sometimes, she even went to the farmers market so that there would be bright apples on the table instead of thick gray books like Representations of the Feminine in Ancient Hindu Sculpture.

From "Aru Shah and the End of Time" by Roshani Chokshi

Related Words

• sculpt