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art form

American  

noun

  1. the more or less established structure, pattern, or scheme followed in shaping an artistic work.

    The sonata, the sonnet, and the novel are all art forms.

  2. a medium for artistic expression.

    ballet, sculpture, opera, and other art forms.

  3. a medium other than the artistic regarded as having highly developed or systematized rules, procedures, or formulations.

    international diplomacy regarded as an art form.


art form British  

noun

  1. a conventionally established form of artistic composition, such as the symphony or the sonnet

  2. a recognized medium of artistic expression

"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

Etymology

Origin of art form

First recorded in 1865–70


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

"The way that Tite Kubo integrates all these cultures and represents them in a Japanese art form is really interesting and amazing," the 28-year-old explains.

From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2026

Something new would have been the sight of them kicking on at 1-0, but in Europe such strength is a dying art form in this team.

From BBC ● Oct. 23, 2026

“The simplest thing to forget is that what music is about, and any kind of art form is about, is creating the kind of things that you think are beautiful,” says Corea.

From Salon ● Oct. 23, 2026

An exhibition at New York’s Bard Graduate Center showcases fashion’s essential, energizing role in the emergence of cinema as an art form.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 12, 2026

According to the crumbling book, it was an old, old art form that had begun back when Chattana was little more than a sleepy fishing village.

From "A Wish in the Dark" by Christina Soontornvat

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