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figuration

[fig-yuh-rey-shuh n]
See more synonyms for figuration on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. the act of shaping into a particular figure.
  2. the resulting figure or shape: emblematic figurations of the sun and the moon.
  3. the act of representing figuratively.
  4. a figurative representation: allegorical figurations.
  5. the act of marking or adorning with a design.
  6. Music.
    1. the employment of passing notes or other embellishments.
    2. the figuring of a bass part.
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Origin of figuration

1400–50; late Middle English figuracioun < Latin figūrātiōn- (stem of figūrātiō) “a shaping” (see figure) + -ion
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

symbolismoutlineformcontour

Examples from the Web for figuration

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • Of trans-Alpine figuration after 1250 the less said the better.

    Art

    Clive Bell

  • The figuration of the main hatch showed a small square, and there was a companion or hatch-cover abaft the mainmast.

    The Frozen Pirate

    W. Clark Russell

  • I stared earnestly at the rocky slopes on either hand, but could not have sworn their figuration was changed.

    The Frozen Pirate

    W. Clark Russell

  • The process which we have just described is the dominant process in Egyptian figuration.

British Dictionary definitions for figuration

figuration

noun
  1. music
    1. the employment of characteristic patterns of notes, esp in variations on a theme
    2. decoration or florid ornamentation in general
  2. the act or an instance of representing figuratively, as by means of allegory or emblem
  3. a figurative or emblematic representation
  4. the act of decorating with a design
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012