figuration
Americannoun
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the act of shaping into a particular figure.
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the resulting figure or shape.
emblematic figurations of the sun and the moon.
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the act of representing figuratively.
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a figurative representation.
allegorical figurations.
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the act of marking or adorning with a design.
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Music.
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the employment of passing notes or other embellishments.
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the figuring of a bass part.
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noun
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music
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the employment of characteristic patterns of notes, esp in variations on a theme
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decoration or florid ornamentation in general
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the act or an instance of representing figuratively, as by means of allegory or emblem
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a figurative or emblematic representation
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the act of decorating with a design
Etymology
Origin of figuration
1400–50; late Middle English figuracioun < Latin figūrātiōn- (stem of figūrātiō ) “a shaping” ( see figure ( def. )) + -ion
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.
Joan Vila-Grau’s brilliantly hued stained-glass windows seem suspended between abstraction and figuration, never resolving the tension.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
He dabbled with Fauvism, Austrian Expressionism and Post-Impressionism, but like so many who experiment, these tastes gave way to the hard stuff: Abstract Expressionism and Francis Bacon-inspired figuration.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
His sculptures from this time look like whimsical industrial castoffs or colorful yet mangled theatrical masks, toeing the line between objects and bodies, abstraction and figuration.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2023
Her gestures, like the schematic flowers that let her claim a toehold in figuration, are always distinctly efficient.
From New York Times ● Jun. 1, 2023
They do not get that absolute mastery over technical difficulties of figuration which was the great secret of the incredible facility and spontaneity of composition displayed by Handel and Bach.
From The Unseen World and Other Essays by John Fiske
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