calligraphy
Americannoun
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fancy penmanship, especially highly decorative handwriting, as with a great many flourishes.
She appreciated the calligraphy of the 18th century.
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handwriting; penmanship.
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the art of writing beautifully.
He studied calligraphy when he was a young man.
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a script, usually cursive, although sometimes angular, produced chiefly by brush, especially Chinese, Japanese, or Arabic writing of high aesthetic value.
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Fine Arts. line or a group of lines either derived from or resembling letter forms and characterized by qualities usually associated with cursive writing, especially that produced with a brush or pen.
noun
Other Word Forms
- calligrapher noun
- calligraphic adjective
- calligraphical adjective
- calligraphically adverb
- calligraphist noun
Etymology
Origin of calligraphy
First recorded in 1605–15, calligraphy is from the Greek word kalligraphía beautiful writing. See calli-, -graphy
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.
To illustrate, she holds up a box of charred scraps covered in Arabic calligraphy.
From BBC
Enthusiasts of the Dutch and Flemish Golden Age will be delighted to learn of the more quotidian arts that rounded out this visually rich epoch: hand-wrought lace, calligraphy, botanical illustrations and more.
After photos hit the wires showing construction equipment at the White House, tearing into the East Wing, critics lamented the lost quarters of the social secretary and the calligraphy office.
Kurosawa insisted on mixing black calligraphy ink with the water in the rain machines, to ensure that the deluge could be distinguished from the cloudy sky behind it.
Mothersbaugh always knew he’d be in a band, but he went to Kent State to study art, especially drawn to printmaking and calligraphy.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
