Leonardo da Vinci

[ lee-uh-nahr-doh duh-vin-chee, ley-; Italian le-aw-nahr-daw dah veen-chee ]

noun
  1. 1452–1519, Italian painter, sculptor, architect, musician, engineer, mathematician, and scientist.

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British Dictionary definitions for Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci

/ (ˌliːəˈnɑːdəʊ də ˈvɪntʃɪ) /


noun
  1. 1452–1519, Italian painter, sculptor, architect, and engineer: the most versatile talent of the Italian Renaissance. His most famous paintings include The Virgin of the Rocks (1483–85), the Mona Lisa (or La Gioconda, 1503), and the Last Supper (?1495–97). His numerous drawings, combining scientific precision in observation with intense imaginative power, reflect the breadth of his interests, which ranged over biology, physiology, hydraulics, and aeronautics. He invented the first armoured tank and foresaw the invention of aircraft and submarines

Derived forms of Leonardo da Vinci

  • Leonardesque (ˌliːənɑːˈdɛsk), adjective

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

Scientific definitions for Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci

[ lē′ə-närdō də vĭnchē ]


  1. Italian artist, scientist, and inventor whose scientific insights were far ahead of their time. He investigated anatomy, geology, botany, hydraulics, optics, mathematics, meteorology, and mechanics. He also drew up designs for the first workable helicopter, parachute, and bicycle, all of which were eventually constructed centuries after his death using modern materials and technology.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Cultural definitions for Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci

[ (lee-uh-nahr-doh, lay-uh-nahr-doh duh vin-chee) ]


An Italian artist, scientist, and inventor of the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries. His wide range of interests and abilities makes him a grand example of a “Renaissance man.” Leonardo painted the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper. His drawings include brilliant studies of the human body and of natural objects. Some of his sketches anticipate modern inventions such as the airplane and the tank.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.