texture

[teks-cher]

noun

1. the visual and especially tactile quality of a surface.

   rough texture.

2. the characteristic structure of the interwoven or intertwined threads, strands, or the like, that make up a textile fabric.

   coarse texture.

3. the characteristic physical structure given to a material, an object, etc., by the size, shape, arrangement, and proportions of its parts.

   soil of a sandy texture; a cake with a heavy texture.

4. an essential or characteristic quality; essence.

5. Fine Arts.

   1. the characteristic visual and tactile quality of the surface of a work of art resulting from the way in which the materials are used.

   2. the imitation of the tactile quality of represented objects.

6. the quality given, as to a musical or literary work, by the combination or interrelation of parts or elements.

7. a rough or grainy surface quality.

8. anything produced by weaving; woven fabric.

verb (used with object)

textured, texturing 

1. to give texture or a particular texture to.

2. to make by or as if by weaving.

texture

/ ˈtɛkstʃə /

noun

1. the surface of a material, esp as perceived by the sense of touch

   a wall with a rough texture

2. the structure, appearance, and feel of a woven fabric

3. the general structure and disposition of the constituent parts of something

   the texture of a cake

4. the distinctive character or quality of something

   the texture of life in America

5. the nature of a surface other than smooth

   woollen cloth has plenty of texture

6. art the representation of the nature of a surface

   the painter caught the grainy texture of the sand

7. 1. music considered as the interrelationship between the horizontally presented aspects of melody and rhythm and the vertically represented aspect of harmony

      a contrapuntal texture

   2. the nature and quality of the instrumentation of a passage, piece, etc

verb

1. (tr) to give a distinctive usually rough or grainy texture to

texture

1. The general physical appearance of a rock, especially with respect to the size, shape, size variability, and geometric arrangement of its mineral crystals (for igneous and metamorphic rocks) and of its constituent elements (for sedimentary rocks). A sandstone that forms as part of an eolian (wind-blown) deposit, for example, has a texture that reflects its small, rounded sand grains of uniform size, while a sandstone that formed as part of a fluvial deposit has a texture reflecting the presence of grains of varying sizes, with some more rounded than others.

Other Word Forms

• textural adjective
• texturally adverb
• textureless adjective
• nontextural adjective
• nontexturally adverb
• retexture verb (used with object)
• semitextural adjective
• semitexturally adverb
• untextural adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of texture¹

1400–50; late Middle English < Latin textūra web, equivalent to text ( us ) (past participle of texere to weave) + -ūra -ure

Word History and Origins

Origin of texture¹

C15: from Latin textūra web, from texere to weave

Example Sentences

Swift's new music is more cool and collected than her previous collaborations with Martin; tapping into the atmospheric textures of his recent hits for The Weeknd and Ariana Grande.

Read more on BBC

The frozen dessert offers an amalgamation of textures in the best way possible.

Read more on Salon

Delicious, yes, but not the texture I wanted, especially with the addition of apple butter.

Read more on Salon

I think of it as texture, temperature, proximity and so much more.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Every bite is a mash-up of textures and flavors — rich, tangy, savory, with a touch of runny yolk magic, which doubles as the “sauce” here.

Read more on Salon

Related Words

• balance 
• character 
• composition 
• consistency 
• fabric 
• feeling 
• makeup 
• nature 
• pattern 
• quality 
• sense 
• smoothness www.thesaurus.com
• structure 
• surface 
• taste 
• touch