composed
Americanadjective
adjective
Synonym Usage
See calm.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of composed
Explanation
The adjective composed describes someone who is calm and shows no nervousness or agitation. You may be very upset about your brother’s unkind remark, but your composed face doesn’t give away your feelings. If you’re composed, that means you're free of emotion or nervousness — or at least you look that way. Composed typically describes an outward appearance, so you could be angry on the inside but still maintain a composed manner that hides what you’re really feeling. You’ll often hear the word used to describe someone who can keep everything under control during times of stress. You probably look composed even when you’re stressing out over your calculus exam.
Vocabulary lists containing composed
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
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Mellow Out: Synonyms for "Calm"
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Dragon Hoops
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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.
For musician Hernani Almeida, who arranged Ceuzany's latest album and composed several of its songs, she is unique among the new generation.
From Barron's • Jul. 2, 2026
It should work a lot like email, in which data composed of bits and bytes exist as a whole in one place, are disassembled, and then electronically transmitted to another place where they are reassembled.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 29, 2026
Clarke came across as composed and assured that they were ready.
From BBC • Jun. 28, 2026
For the memorial game, the Feeneys had reverted to their old batting order, so after Greenberg, the lineup would be wholly composed of Feeney elders.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 26, 2026
“Do you ever think about the fact that other people have dinners entirely outside of their boardinghouse rooms that aren’t composed of foods that come in tins or boxes?”
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
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.
