Jump To:

• art
  art

  noun

  the quality, production, expression, or realm of things that conform to accepted aesthetic principles of beauty, show imagination and skill, and have more than ordinary meaning and importance.
• Art
  Art

  noun

  a first name, form of Arthur.
• ART
  ART

  article: often used to represent the class of determiners, including words such as this, that, and some as well as the articles a, an, and the.
• -art
  -art

  variant of -ard.
• art.
  art.

  abbreviation

  article; articles.

art

¹ American  

[ahrt] / ɑrt /

noun

• arts
  plural

1. the quality, production, expression, or realm of things that conform to accepted aesthetic principles of beauty, show imagination and skill, and have more than ordinary meaning and importance.

   Art is a characteristic human activity.

   My parents and I disagree about what qualifies as art.

2. the class of objects that meet or are subject to aesthetic criteria; objects considered beautiful, imaginative, skillful, and meaningful collectively, such as paintings, sculptures, or drawings.

   The palace houses a remarkable collection of art.

   The local museum of art currently has a special exhibit of the works of Kurelek.

3. the visual or fine arts collectively, often excluding architecture.

   She dabbled in art, including painting and sculpture.

4. the arts, the fine arts together with literature and the performing arts.

   I attended a high school that emphasized the arts, and I took every drama course I could.

   There never seems to be enough public funding for the arts.

5. a field, genre, or category of creative, imaginative, skilled activity that meets or is subject to aesthetic criteria.

   Poetry and dance are arts.

6. any craft or field of creative activity applying aesthetic principles, skill, and technique.

   She does graphic art for an advertising company.

7. arts,

   1. the cluster of academic disciplines dealing with art, literature, languages, philosophy, etc., as distinct from the natural and social sciences and the technical or professional fields; the humanities.

      He teaches in the College of Arts and Sciences.

      There are fewer opportunities these days for graduates with a degree in arts.

   2. the humanities together with the natural and social sciences, as opposed to the professional and technical fields; liberal arts.

      Are you at the Faculty of Arts, or at one of the professional faculties?

8. a branch of learning or university study, especially one of the fine arts or the humanities, such as music, philosophy, or literature.

   We attended a brilliant lecture on the role of the arts of philosophy and rhetoric in expanding knowledge.

9. 1. the principles, techniques, or methods governing any craft, trade, or profession.

      the art of baking;

      the art of selling.

   2. the craft, trade, or profession using these principles, techniques, or methods.

10. skill in conducting any human activity.

    You are a master at the art of conversation!

    From my mother, I learned the art of making perfectly cooked pasta.

    Synonyms:

    know-how, skillfulness, facility, knack

11. skilled workmanship, execution, or agency, as distinguished from nature.

    Do these shrubs in your garden owe their shape to art or to nature?

12. (in printed matter) illustrative or decorative material.

    Is there any art with the copy for this story?

13. trickery or cunning, or an instance of this.

    Don’t be taken in by their devious art.

    She is adept at the innumerable arts and wiles of politics.

    Synonyms:

    stratagem, tactic, trick, scheme, contrivance, scheming, machination, intrigue, artfulness, wiliness, slyness, guile, craftiness, wile, feint, dodge, ruse, subterfuge, maneuver

14. pretense or artificiality in behavior.

    He had a manner free of art and affectation.

    Synonyms:

    falsehood, imposture, duplicity, deception, deceit

    Antonyms:

    honesty, truthfulness, sincerity, ingenuousness, artlessness, openness, candor, frankness

15. Archaic. science, learning, or scholarship.

---

verb phrase

1. art up to improve the aesthetic quality of (something) through some form of art.

   This dress is so plain, it could use some arting up.

   I had an interior designer art up my apartment.

art ² American  

[ahrt] / ɑrt /

verb

Archaic.

1. 2nd person singular present indicative of be.

---

Art ³ American  

[ahrt] / ɑrt /

noun

1. a first name, form of Arthur.

---

ART ⁴ American  

Linguistics.

1. article: often used to represent the class of determiners, including words such as this, that, and some as well as the articles a, an, and the.

---

-art ⁵ American  

1. variant of -ard.

   braggart.

---

art. ⁶ American  

abbreviation

• arts
  plural

1. article; articles.

2. artificial.

3. artillery.

4. artist.

---

art ¹ British  

/ ɑːt /

noun

1. 1. the creation of works of beauty or other special significance

   2. ( as modifier )

      an art movement

2. the exercise of human skill (as distinguished from nature )

3. imaginative skill as applied to representations of the natural world or figments of the imagination

4. 1. the products of man's creative activities; works of art collectively, esp of the visual arts, sometimes also music, drama, dance, and literature

   2. ( as modifier ) See also arts fine art

      an art gallery

5. excellence or aesthetic merit of conception or execution as exemplified by such works

6. any branch of the visual arts, esp painting

7. (modifier) intended to be artistic or decorative

   art needlework

8. 1. any field using the techniques of art to display artistic qualities

      advertising art

   2. ( as modifier )

      an art film

9. journalism photographs or other illustrations in a newspaper, etc

10. method, facility, or knack

    the art of threading a needle

    the art of writing letters

11. the system of rules or principles governing a particular human activity

    the art of government

12. artfulness; cunning

13. to become highly proficient at something through practice

---

-art ² British  

suffix

1. a variant of -ard

---

ART ³ British  

abbreviation

1. assisted reproductive technology

---

art ⁴ British  

/ ɑːt /

verb

1. archaic (used with the pronoun thou) a singular form of the present tense (indicative mood) of be 1

---

art Idioms  

1. see fine art; state of the art.

---

Usage

What does -art mean? The combining form -art is a suffix denoting “someone who engages often in an activity,” and it is frequently pejorative. It is very rarely used in a handful of terms. The form -art comes from German -hard, meaning “strong; hardy; hard,” which is a cognate of English hard. What are variants of -art?In most instances, the form -art is spelled -ard, as in drunkard. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use article about -ard.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• arts
  plural

Etymology

Origin of art¹

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English, from Old French, from Latin ars (stem art- ) “skill, craft, craftsmanship”

Origin of art²

First recorded before 950; Middle English; Old English eart, equivalent to ear- ( see are ¹) + -t ending of 2nd person singular

Explanation

Art is the expression of ideas and emotions through a physical medium, like painting, sculpture, film, dance, writing, photography, or theatre. If you love the creative process, maybe you'll devote your life to art. The definition of art is constantly changing and evolving to include different types of activity, and the question “What is art?” has been discussed for thousands of years. Some people believe that art is the attempt to create beautiful objects, while others call art all of the works that appear in a gallery or museum, whether beautiful or ugly. Art can also mean a specific skill you’ve learned, like the art of baking a delicious pie.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

art Art ART -art art. arts

The cafe will be open to non-ticketed guests, and is surrounded by a number of pieces of outdoor public art.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 5, 2026

It’s not that I’m offended by the idea of generated art; it’s just that it bores me.

From Salon ● Oct. 4, 2026

At the beginning of that phase, the Journal wrote, Jobs described his philosophy as trying to make products that were at “the intersection of art and technology.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026

Now those darkened daytime Bradford rooms will take their place alongside other defining names and moments in cultural history inside Tate Britain, home to the biggest collection of British art in the world.

From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026

"Until the coward who did this confesses, Room Nineteen is banned from the art contest."

From "Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher" by Bruce Coville

He is said to have spent an astonishing $100 million to renovate it for a planned Beechwood Art Museum.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 5, 2026

His photographs feature in new showcase The 90s: Art and Fashion, which opens on Thursday.

From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026

After its debut at New York’s Museum of Modern Art, the first U.S. retrospective of his work in more than 50 years now moves to Philadelphia.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026

The piece is now in the collection of Pérez Art Museum Miami.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026

Art has the power to penetrate to the core of our being, which recognizes itself in the creative act.

From "History of Art, Volume 1" by H.W. Janson

One of the most striking findings was that levels of ART medications in the bloodstream were lower, even though viral suppression remained intact.

From Science Daily ● Jan. 21, 2026

Today, most research in the field is focused on developing vaccines to fight cancer, but mRNA holds "many other possibilities," the ART lab's head Chantal Pichon said.

From Barron's ● Nov. 20, 2025

The survival rate has risen "from five percent in 2000 to 10 percent today", ART gastroenterologist Birane Beye said.

From Barron's ● Nov. 20, 2025

The ART Act, she said, was introduced to stop commercial use of surrogacy, to regulate and supervise clinics, not to impinge upon personal freedoms of aggrieved parents.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2024

What will I do then, when all my hopes of making things better are in the same basket marked ART SCHOOL?

From "Starfish" by Akemi Dawn Bowman

And he has lofty artistic ambitions in movies and beyond -art, philanthropy, music - and would like to work with directors like Gaspar Noe, Terrence Malick, Wes Anderson, the Coens and the Nolans.

From Washington Times ● Sep. 5, 2018

Here used in contempt, like many other words with the suffix -ard, or -art, as braggart, sluggard, etc.

From Milton's Comus by William Bell

“It’s meditative whenever I’m doing my art. And it’s fun,” she said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026

“We work for the art. It’s not about us. We’re here to serve the object,” Patterson said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026

"I don't think so. I don't think it's an art. No."

From Barron's ● Jun. 19, 2026

She continued: "To rave is an art. It's about pushing your limits and connecting to a community of like-minded people."

From BBC ● Apr. 15, 2026

“These are for your art. As for the horse...”

From "The Son of Neptune" by Rick Riordan

Riffing on the human need for emotional engagement through the arts with such venom is not just a slap in the face; it’s evidence of Iñárritu’s gnawing insecurities.

From Salon ● Oct. 5, 2026

"MMA is my final transition in my combat sports career. I think my success will encourage more athletes to be brave and try mixed martial arts in China," said Cong.

From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026

Today he serves as provost professor of humanities and arts at USC.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026

A return to industrial musicals in the age of A.I. didn’t strike me as a solution for all the woes afflicting the performing arts, from pricey tickets to the increasingly blatant corporatization of the arts.

From Slate ● Oct. 1, 2026

I’d say I have a good set of ears for this kind of work—spending time with the Pickled Onion sure has helped me in the arts of eavesdropping, spying, and general sneaking around.

From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan

Related Words

• craft
• profession