bricolage

[ bree-kuh-lahzh, brik-uh- ]

noun,plural bri·co·la·ges [bree-kuh-lah-zhiz, ‐lahzh], /ˌbri kəˈlɑ ʒɪz, ‐ˈlɑʒ/, bri·co·lage.
  1. a construction made of whatever materials are at hand; something created from a variety of available things.

  2. (in literature) a piece created from diverse resources.

  1. (in art) a piece of makeshift handiwork.

  2. the use of multiple, diverse research methods.

Origin of bricolage

1
First recorded in 1960–65; from French, literally, “do-it-yourself,” from bricoler “to do odd jobs, small chores,” from Middle French bricoler “to zigzag, bounce off,” from Old French bricole “a trifle, bricole ” + -age -age

Words Nearby bricolage

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

British Dictionary definitions for bricolage

bricolage

/ (ˈbrɪkəˌlɑːʒ, French brɪkɔlaʒ) /


nounarchitect
  1. the jumbled effect produced by the close proximity of buildings from different periods and in different architectural styles

  2. the deliberate creation of such an effect in certain modern developments: the post-modernist bricolage of the new shopping centre

Origin of bricolage

1
French: odd jobs, do-it-yourself

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012