photograph
Americannoun
verb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
-
to practice photography.
-
to be photographed or be suitable for being photographed in some specified way.
The children photograph well.
noun
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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photographableadjective
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unphotographableadjective
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unphotographedadjective
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well-photographedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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photographsimple
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photographssimple
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have photographedperfect
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has photographedperfect
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am photographingprogressive
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are photographingprogressive
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is photographingprogressive
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have been photographingperfect progressive
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has been photographingperfect progressive
Past
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photographedsimple
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had photographedperfect
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was photographingprogressive
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were photographingprogressive
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had been photographingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of photograph
Explanation
When you take a picture with a camera, the result is a photograph, a picture of your subject created by a special medium’s exposure to light. The first photographs were created on metal plates coated with a special chemical. Although photography as we know it did not emerge until the 19th century, the word photograph evolved from the ancient Greek words phot-, "light," and graph-, "writing," which were combined to create the word for taking pictures — "light writing." Nowadays we take our photographs with electronic cameras, recording, transferring, and storing the pictures digitally. Times change, and while many people still enjoy using film cameras, they are becoming increasingly rare, and certain types of films are no longer produced.
Vocabulary lists containing photograph
Write On!: Graph and Gram
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Introduction to Informational Text
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Cormac McCarthy's "The Road"
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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.
Sir Anthony Hopkins has prompted a flurry of divided reaction after sharing a photograph of himself wearing an England football shirt ahead of the team's World Cup Match against Mexico.
From BBC • Jul. 6, 2026
I’m out in the world, even if I’ve retired from standing in line for a cup of coffee, and I can download a photograph onto my wristwatch.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 1, 2026
This Fourth of July, I will be thinking about the iconic photograph of Chief Petty Officer Graham Jackson watching President Franklin Roosevelt’s funeral procession, tears streaming down his face as he plays the accordion.
From Salon • Jun. 30, 2026
Exuberant celebrations followed, with Khalilzadeh removing his shirt - for which he was later booked - and posing for a photograph with a pair of sunglasses.
From BBC • Jun. 28, 2026
I tuck the photograph inside it and under my coat.
From "The Light in Hidden Places" by Sharon Cameron
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.
