physiognomy

American  

[fiz-ee-og-nuh-mee, -on-uh-mee] / ˌfɪz iˈɒg nə mi, -ˈɒn ə mi /

noun

• physiognomies
  plural

1. the face or countenance, especially when considered as an index to the character.

   a fierce physiognomy.

2. Also called anthroposcopy.  the art of determining character or personal characteristics from the form or features of the body, especially of the face.

3. the outward appearance of anything, taken as offering some insight into its character.

   the physiognomy of a nation.

---

physiognomy British  

/ ˌfɪzɪˈɒnəmɪ, ˌfɪzɪəˈnɒmɪk /

noun

1. a person's features or characteristic expression considered as an indication of personality

2. the art or practice of judging character from facial features

3. the outward appearance of something, esp the physical characteristics of a geographical region

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• physiognomist
  noun
• physiognomic
  adjective
• physiognomical
  adjective
• physiognomonic
  adjective
• physiognomonical
  adjective
• physiognomically
  adverb
• physiognomonically
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• physiognomies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of physiognomy

1350–1400; earlier phisognomie, phisiognomie, late Middle English phisonomie < Medieval Latin physionomia, physonomia < Late Greek physiognōmía, syncopated variant of Greek physiognōmonía art of judging a person by his features ( see physio-, gnomon, -y ³); replacing Middle English fisenamie, fisnamie, fisnomie < Middle French fisonomie < Medieval Latin, as above; cf. phiz

Explanation

The word physiognomy means the appearance of someone's face. When traveling in Italy, you may be struck by the pleasing physiognomy of the marble statues sculpted during the Renaissance. The reason physiognomy sounds like it should be something you study in school right after biology, geometry, and astronomy is that people used to think that it was a science by which you could tell someone's character through their facial features. If you've ever read any Nancy Drew stories, you will know how this plays out — anyone with "shifty eyes" is not to be trusted.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

physiognomy physiognomies

Such activities include praying to gods and deities, fortunetelling and physiognomy, and consulting spiritual gurus or mystics, according to party commentaries and state media.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 17, 2026

“Although Hall never resorts to a cliched impersonation, his suggestion of Nixon’s physiognomy is frequently uncanny, especially in profile.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 13, 2022

You can bet actors of every physiognomy – Oldman, Bale, Rockwell, Streep – are already thinking: “I could have a crack at Trump” Film-makers are doubtless considering the options, too.

From The Guardian ● Nov. 23, 2020

To an extent, her success was due to physiognomy.

From The New Yorker ● May 14, 2019

And the process of naming “the people” has never been a matter of genealogy and physiognomy so much as one of hierarchy.

From "Between the World and Me" by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Linowitz’s fanciful physiognomies peer inside as they bulge outward.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 21, 2023

“Avatar” was a thrilling moviegoing experience and a pioneering showpiece for performance-capture technology, which allowed Cameron and his actors to endow their Na’vi characters with astonishingly detailed and lifelike gazes, gestures and physiognomies.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 13, 2022

Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson have two of the most mesmerizing — and pleasurably unnerving — physiognomies in movies.

From New York Times ● Oct. 16, 2019

Craggy, gnarled, lean and tough, with a touch of whimsy, it is one of the most remembered physiognomies in history.

From The Guardian ● Feb. 11, 2013

Their physiognomies differed from those of the modern peasants as a medallion differs from a son.

From One of Cleopatra's Nights and Other Fantastic Romances One of Cleopatra's Nights?Clarimonde?Arria Marcella?The Mummy's Foot?Omphale: a Rococo Story?King Candaules by Gautier, Th?ophile