fictile

American  

[fik-tl, fik-tahyl] / ˈfɪk tl, ˈfɪk taɪl /

adjective

1. capable of being molded.

2. made of earth, clay, etc., by a potter.

3. of or relating to pottery.

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fictile British  

/ ˈfɪktaɪl /

adjective

1. moulded or capable of being moulded from clay; plastic

2. made of clay by a potter

3. relating to the craft of pottery

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Etymology

Origin of fictile

First recorded in 1620–30; from Latin fictilis “earthen” (literally, “moldable”), equivalent to fict(us) “shaped” (past participle of fingere ) + -ilis -ile

Example Sentences

For ours is a most fictile world; and man is the most fingent plastic of creatures.

From The French Revolution by Carlyle, Thomas

The inferiority of their religious architecture was due to the natural formation of their country, which restricted them almost entirely to the use of a fictile material.

From A History of Art in Chaldæa & Assyria, v. 1 by Armstrong, Walter, Sir

Al-Barníya, "vas fictile in quo quid recondunt," whence the Spanish word Albornia, "a great glazed vessel in the shape of a bowl, with handles."

From The Travels of Marco Polo — Volume 1 by Yule, Henry

In the first none of the fictile ware was turned on the wheel or fire-baked.

From The Masculine Cross A History of Ancient and Modern Crosses and Their Connection with the Mysteries of Sex Worship; Also an Account of the Kindred Phases of Phallic Faiths and Practices by Anonymous

The fictile art is the offshoot and has within itself no predilection for decoration.

From A Study Of The Textile Art In Its Relation To The Development Of Form And Ornament Sixth Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1884-'85, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1888, (pages 189-252) by Holmes, William Henry

Related Words

• malleable
• pliable
• supple