mannerism

[man-uh-riz-uhm]

noun

1. a habitual or characteristic manner, mode, or way of doing something; distinctive quality or style, as in behavior or speech.

   He has an annoying mannerism of tapping his fingers while he talks. They copied his literary mannerisms but always lacked his ebullience.

2. marked or excessive adherence to an unusual or a particular manner, especially if affected.

   Natural courtesy is a world apart from snobbish mannerism.

3. (usually initial capital letter),  a style in the fine arts developed principally in Europe during the 16th century, chiefly characterized by a complex perspectival system, elongation of forms, strained gestures or poses of figures, and intense, often strident color.

mannerism

/ ˈmænəˌrɪzəm /

noun

1. a distinctive and individual gesture or trait; idiosyncrasy

2. (often capital) a principally Italian movement in art and architecture between the High Renaissance and Baroque periods (1520–1600) that sought to represent an ideal of beauty rather than natural images of it, using characteristic distortion and exaggeration of human proportions, perspective, etc

3. adherence to a distinctive or affected manner, esp in art or literature

Other Word Forms

• manneristic adjective
• manneristically adverb
• mannerist noun
• nonmanneristic adjective
• semimanneristic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of mannerism¹

First recorded in 1795–1805; manner ¹ + -ism

Example Sentences

He studied their individual tics and mannerisms to find the things that people across the world might only note subconsciously, and wove them into his caricatures.

From Salon

A lot of what he did and does, I’ve stolen those moves, and so we get to do scenes where he’s playing my dad and our mannerisms are so uncomfortably similar.

From Los Angeles Times

There are nods to traditional Korean folk painting, a Korean guide to the afterlife, the progenitors of K-pop and everyday mannerisms.

From Los Angeles Times

“His mannerisms and his speech patterns, exactly. He’s double slick.”

From Los Angeles Times

Jess recognised her brother's mannerisms as being very similar to their mother, and told him they shared a passion for music and history.

From BBC

Related Words

• eccentricity 
• idiosyncrasy 
• quirk 
• trait