model
Americannoun
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models
plural
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a standard or example for imitation or comparison.
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a representation, generally in miniature, to show the construction or appearance of something.
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an image in clay, wax, or the like, to be reproduced in more durable material.
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a person or thing that serves as a subject for an artist, sculptor, writer, etc.
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a person whose profession is posing for artists or photographers.
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a person employed to wear clothing or pose with a product for purposes of display and advertising.
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a style or design of a particular product.
His car is last year's model.
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a pattern or mode of structure or formation.
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a typical form or style.
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a simplified representation of a system or phenomenon, as in the sciences or economics, with any hypotheses required to describe the system or explain the phenomenon, often mathematically.
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Zoology. an animal that is mimicked in form or color by another.
adjective
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serving as an example or model.
a model home open to prospective buyers.
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worthy to serve as a model; exemplary.
a model student.
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being a small or miniature version of something.
He enjoyed building model ships.
verb (used with object)
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models,
present (3rd person singular)
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modeled,
past participle, past
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modelled,
past participle, past (especially British)
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modeling,
present participle
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modelling
present participle (especially British)
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to form or plan according to a model.
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to give shape or form to; fashion.
- Synonyms:
- design
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to make a miniature model of.
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to fashion in clay, wax, or the like.
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to simulate (a process, concept, or the operation of a system), commonly with the aid of a computer.
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to display to other persons or to prospective customers, especially by wearing.
to model dresses.
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to use or include as an element in a larger construct.
to model new data into the forecast.
verb (used without object)
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models,
present (3rd person singular)
-
modeled,
past participle, past
-
modelled,
past participle, past (especially British)
-
modeling,
present participle
-
modelling
present participle (especially British)
-
to make models.
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to produce designs in some plastic material.
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to assume a typical or natural appearance, as the parts of a drawing in progress.
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to serve or be employed as a model.
noun
-
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a representation, usually on a smaller scale, of a device, structure, etc
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( as modifier )
a model train
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-
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a standard to be imitated
she was my model for good scholarship
-
( as modifier )
a model wife
-
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a representative form, style, or pattern
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a person who poses for a sculptor, painter, or photographer
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a person who wears clothes to display them to prospective buyers; mannequin
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a preparatory sculpture in clay, wax, etc, from which the finished work is copied
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a design or style, esp one of a series of designs of a particular product
last year's model
-
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an original unique article of clothing
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( as modifier )
a model coat
-
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a simplified representation or description of a system or complex entity, esp one designed to facilitate calculations and predictions
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logic
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an interpretation of a formal system under which the theorems derivable in that system are mapped onto truths
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a theory in which a given sentence is true
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verb
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to make a model of (something or someone)
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to form in clay, wax, etc; mould
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to display (clothing and accessories) as a mannequin
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to plan or create according to a model or models
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to arrange studio lighting so that highlights and shadows emphasize the desired features of a human form or an inanimate object
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A systematic description of an object or phenomenon that shares important characteristics with the object or phenomenon. Scientific models can be material, visual, mathematical, or computational and are often used in the construction of scientific theories.
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See also hypothesis theory
Synonym Usage
See ideal.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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modelernoun
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modellernoun
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premodelverb (used without object)
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unmodeledadjective
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unmodelledadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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modelsimple
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modelssimple
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have modeledperfect
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have modelledperfect
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has modeledperfect
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has modelledperfect
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am modelingprogressive
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am modellingprogressive
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are modelingprogressive
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are modellingprogressive
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is modelingprogressive
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is modellingprogressive
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have been modelingperfect progressive
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have been modellingperfect progressive
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has been modelingperfect progressive
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has been modellingperfect progressive
Past
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modeledsimple
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modelledsimple
-
had modeledperfect
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had modelledperfect
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was modelingprogressive
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was modellingprogressive
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were modelingprogressive
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were modellingprogressive
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had been modelingperfect progressive
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had been modellingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of model
First recorded 1565–75; earlier modell, from Middle French modelle, from Italian modello, from Vulgar Latin modellus (unrecorded), equivalent to Latin mod(ulus), a unit of measurement ( see module) + -ellus -elle
Explanation
To model something is to show it off. To make a model of your favorite car is to create a miniature version of it. To be a model is to be so gorgeous that you’re photographed for a living. The word model, which can be a noun, verb, or adjective, comes from the Latin word modulus, meaning “measure,” or “standard.” If you are a model student, you do everything as the school and teachers wish: you are the standard. If you model your life on your hero's, you try to do what he or she does. If you are a clothing designer you will need to hire a model to model your creations.
Vocabulary lists containing model
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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The SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 3
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The Scientific Method
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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.
See Examples For:
This is a risky step that will probably determine whether a business model exists for Anthropic's vision of the AI revolution.
From Barron's ● Aug. 26, 2026
"Bitcoin mining is particularly well suited to that model because it is flexible and interruptible, while AI workloads can provide longer-duration contracted revenues," he said.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
James argues that this familiar explanation, sometimes called the "sandwich model," does not fit neatly with what scientists know about the brain.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 25, 2026
Skills at each stage of life, in their model, are produced from the skills one already has and the investment made at that stage.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
Burry did not think investing could be reduced to a formula or learned from any one role model.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
Like OpenAI, Anthropic has massive needs for the computing power and infrastructure required to build so-called frontier models that stay ahead of competitors, amid fears that China could catch up.
From Barron's ● Aug. 26, 2026
The latest models of the SU7 come with new door handles that can be opened without power.
From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026
Those people are expected to join Nvidia’s Nemotron open-weight AI model project and aim to develop a U.S. counterweight to powerful open models that have recently emerged in China.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
Researchers would need to move beyond strictly linear models and examine processes that happen simultaneously, influence one another, and change as a person interacts with the surrounding world.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 25, 2026
It was natural therefore to claim that, since a clock models the heavens, the heavens are like a clock.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
The scientists then modeled conditions in three locations near the lunar South Pole -- Nobile Rim, Connecting Ridge, and De Gerlache Rim.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 25, 2026
The dogs’ sleeping quarters are modeled after the park’s Pirates of the Caribbean ride, with its fort-like corridors made of sun-dried brick, the walls strewn with overgrown jungle vines.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
The club features a private golf course, a clubhouse modeled on a Mediterranean villa, and a swimming pool with bayfront views of the Miami skyline.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026
If a child sees education modeled as important, that kid is more likely to go to college.
From Slate ● Aug. 11, 2026
Or at least Dylan, who’s dying to see the character I modeled after him.
From "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera
In the 1960s, Labour's Harold Wilson modelled his TV campaigning on JFK in America.
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026
He ended decades of political dominance by dynastic parties and envisioned a national welfare state modelled on the Islamic golden age of the seventh to 14th centuries, a flourishing period in the Muslim world.
From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026
She is a commentator for outlets within conservative French billionaire Vincent Bollore's media stable, including the CNews television channel, which is seen as modelled on America's Fox News.
From Barron's ● Aug. 3, 2026
The 15-second AI-generated clip was posted on Instagram by a popular blogger with the online name Katya Jin, and the couple appear to be modelled on her and her husband.
From BBC ● Jun. 13, 2026
“The optimum population,” said Mustapha Mond, “is modelled on the iceberg—eight-ninths below the water line, one-ninth above.”
From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
Wright added, “Now when you start to look at quantum modeling, the reality of that becomes much more possible than it ever was before.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
Unfortunately, your phone’s app is more likely to try to satisfy that latent desire than to force you to understand how complex weather modeling really is.
From Slate ● Aug. 21, 2026
Their modeling identified an area in the left frontal lobe as a likely starting point from which synaptic loss could spread into connected regions.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 20, 2026
His previous feature, 2016’s love-it-or-hate-it loony toon “The Neon Demon,” was a modeling industry semi-satire that featured beauties quite literally gobbling up their ingenue competition.
From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026
I follow him as he’s modeling, but all I do is stumble.
From "Like Vanessa" by Tami Charles
“Our modelling suggests eurozone headline inflation could rise above 3.5% later this year if current energy prices persist,” he said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
Using modelling simulations, they determined the most likely scenario was that the object is powered by a central black hole surrounded by a cocoon of gas that makes it resemble a star.
From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026
The dataset combines observations from satellites operated by multiple countries, weather stations on land, at sea and in the air, together with climate modelling.
From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026
A modelling scout linked to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has been found dead at his home.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
"I'd like to bring out the modelling of the features. And I'd try to get hold of all the back hair."
From " The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Definitions 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.
