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

---

Etymology

Origin of art form

First recorded in 1865–70

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

art form

I learned instead that ballet is grueling, often painful work made to look effortless by the incredible professional dancers who dedicate their lives to the art form.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026

"There is a lot of skill and imagination involved. It's an art form, really."

From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026

They appeared on “The Tonight Show” and “The Carol Burnett Show,” and were among the first crews to legitimize the art form by making a living from it.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026

Few ballet stars make it past 40 before hanging up their pumps and switching to teaching, overcome by the immense physical, mental and artistic demands of the art form.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026

Keep in mind that any lesson can be made into an arts-integrated one, by simply delving in deeper to the art form itself to find structural details and meaning from which to draw.

From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin