pattern [pat -ern; British pat -n]
Synonyms Examples Word Origin
See more synonyms for pattern on Thesaurus.com a decorative design, as for wallpaper, china, or textile fabrics, etc. decoration or ornament having such a design. a natural or chance marking, configuration, or design: patterns of frost on the window. a distinctive style, model, or form: a new pattern of army helmet. a combination of qualities, acts, tendencies, etc., forming a consistent or characteristic arrangement: the behavior patterns of teenagers. an original or model considered for or deserving of imitation: Our constitution has been a pattern for those of many new republics. anything fashioned or designed to serve as a model or guide for something to be made: a paper pattern for a dress. a sufficient quantity of material for making a garment. the path of flight established for an aircraft approaching an airport at which it is to land. a diagram of lines transmitted occasionally by a television station to aid in adjusting receiving sets; test pattern. Metallurgy a model or form, usually of wood or metal, used for giving the shape of the interior of a mold. Numismatics a coin, either the redesign of an existing piece or the model for a new one, submitted for authorization as a regular issue. an example, instance, sample, or specimen. Gunnery , Aerial Bombing the distribution of strikes around a target at which artillery rounds have been fired or on which bombs have been dropped. a diagram showing such distribution. Show More
to make or fashion after or according to a pattern. to cover or mark with a pattern. Chiefly British Dialect to imitate. to attempt to match or duplicate. Show More
verb (used without object) to make or fall into a pattern. Show More
Origin of pattern 1325–75; Middle English patron <
Medieval Latin patrōnus model, special use of
Latin patrōnus patron Related forms pat·tern·a·ble , adjective pat·terned , adjective pat·tern·er , noun pat·tern·less , adjective pat·tern·like , adjective pat·tern·y , adjective non·pat·terned , adjective re·pat·tern , verb (used with object) sem·i·pat·terned , adjective sub·pat·tern , noun un·pat·terned , adjective Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words for pattern arrangement ,
sort ,
style ,
sequence ,
variety ,
system ,
method ,
shape ,
type ,
kind ,
standard ,
trim ,
motive ,
diagram ,
figure ,
impression ,
instruction ,
ornament ,
guide ,
decoration Examples from the Web for pattern Contemporary Examples of pattern And in so many of these events, the pattern of “blame the victim” was quickly in evidence.
I would have told them, ‘Do not get into a pattern in which you’re intimidated by these kinds of criminal attacks.
Although the Brits would capture New York City a few weeks later, a pattern had been set.
The endpaper features a “pattern of marbleized paper” that has been “individually designed.”
The loss of his life, and all the others from this summer, back to Trayvon and well before that, are part of a pattern .
Historical Examples of pattern If I had seen it in the pattern I should have said it was impossible for your colouring.
It was precisely on the pattern of that worn by the visionary Maid.
The construction of the furnaces is of the ordinary French pattern .
In this she may be exhibited as a pattern for the particular imitation of her own sex.
You will not tire of it as you will of that which has but a commonplace form or pattern .
British Dictionary definitions for pattern an arrangement of repeated or corresponding parts, decorative motifs, etc although the notes seemed random, a careful listener could detect a pattern a decorative design a paisley pattern a style various patterns of cutlery a plan or diagram used as a guide in making something a paper pattern for a dress a standard way of moving, acting, etc traffic patterns a model worthy of imitation a pattern of kindness a representative sample a wooden or metal shape or model used in a foundry to make a mould the arrangement of marks made in a target by bullets a diagram displaying such an arrangement Show More
(often foll by after or on ) to model to arrange as or decorate with a pattern Show More
Word Origin for pattern C14 patron, from Medieval Latin patrōnus example, from Latin: patron 1
Irish an outdoor assembly with religious practices, traders' stalls, etc on the feast day of a patron saint Show More
Word Origin for pattern C18: variant of patron 1 ; see pattern 1
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for pattern n. early 14c., "outline, plan, model, pattern;" early 15c. as "model of behavior, exemplar," from Old French patron and directly from Medieval Latin patronus (see patron ).
Extended sense of "decorative design" first recorded 1580s, from earlier sense of a "patron" as a model to be imitated. The difference in form and sense between patron and pattern wasn't firm till 1700s. Meaning "model or design in dressmaking" (especially one of paper) is first recorded 1792, in Jane Austen.
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v. 1580s, "to make a pattern for, design, plan," from pattern (n.). Meaning "to make something after a pattern" is c.1600. Phrase pattern after "take as a model" is from 1878.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
