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.
Gabriel Kahane composed its musical homage to Ms. Nicks and made reference to one of her songs, “Landslide.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026
During the 1950s and 60s, Sir Paul lived with his family at 20 Forthlin Road in Allerton, Liverpool, and composed some of the earliest Beatles' tracks with John Lennon there.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
In recent years, AEW has pitched itself as an antidote to the WWE, but its roster is also almost entirely composed of independent contractors.
From Salon ● Oct. 2, 2026
But Pratik Gandhi told AFP his longtime friend had appeared notably composed since childhood.
From Barron's ● Oct. 1, 2026
Isaac Newton believed that light was composed of little particles that flowed from every bright object.
From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
