pose

[ pohz ]

/ poʊz /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR pose ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object), posed, pos·ing.

to assume a particular attitude or stance, especially with the hope of impressing others: He likes to pose as an authority on literature.

to present oneself insincerely: He seems to be posing in all his behavior.

to assume or hold a physical attitude, as for an artistic purpose: to pose for a painter.

verb (used with object), posed, pos·ing.

to place in a suitable position or attitude for a picture, tableau, or the like: to pose a group for a photograph.

to assert, state, or put forward: That poses a difficult problem.

to put or place.

noun

a bodily attitude or posture: Her pose had a note of defiance in it.

a mental attitude or posture: a pose cultivated by the upper classes.

the act or period of posing, as for a picture.

a position or attitude assumed in posing, or exhibited by a figure in a picture, sculptural work, tableau, or the like.

a moment in which a dancer remains motionless, usually in an assumed posture.

a studied attitude; affectation: His liberalism is merely a pose.

Nearby words

pos, pos., posable, posada, posadas, pose, poseidon, posen, poser, poseur, posey

Origin of pose

1325–75; (v.) Middle English posen < Middle French poser < Late Latin pausāre to stop, cease, rest, derivative of Latin pausa pause; French poser has taken over the basic sense of Latin pōnere “to put, place” and represents it in French borrowings of its prefixed derivatives (see compose, depose, etc.), probably reinforced by the accidental resemblance of poser to positum, past participle of pōnere; (noun) derivative of the v.

SYNONYMS FOR pose

3 sit, model.

7 See position.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR pose ON THESAURUS.COM

Related formspos·a·ble, adjectivepos·ing·ly, adverb

Definition for pose (2 of 3)

pose

[ pohz ]

/ poʊz /

verb (used with object), posed, pos·ing.

to embarrass or baffle, as by a difficult question or problem.

Obsolete. to examine by putting questions.

Origin of pose

1520–30; aphetic variant of obsolete appose, variant of oppose, used in sense of Latin appōnere to put to

Definition for pose (3 of 3)

posé

[ poh-zey; French paw-zey ]

/ poʊˈzeɪ; French pɔˈzeɪ /

noun, plural po·sés [poh-zeyz; French paw-zey] /poʊˈzeɪz; French pɔˈzeɪ/. Ballet.

a movement in which the dancer steps, in any desired position, from one foot to the other with a straight knee onto the flat foot, demi-pointe, or pointe.

Origin of posé

1925–30; < French: poised, past participle of poser to pose; see pose¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for pose

He called out the conformism hiding in the pose of rugged individuality.
Glenn Beck Is Now Selling Hipster Clothes. Really.|Ana Marie Cox|December 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
After the Thursday prayer, the crowd of Congressional staff and lawmakers posed in the iconic, "Hands Up, Don't Shoot" pose.
Capitol Hill's Black Staffers Walk Out to Say ‘Hands Up, Don't Shoot!’|Tim Mak|December 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Cooper had little Alexis pose for a picture on the exact spot there Garner was pinned.
‘I Can’t Breathe!’ ‘I Can’t Breathe!’ A Moral Indictment of Cop Culture|Michael Daly|December 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
That said, an investigation by the DEA does pose a risk should actual criminal charges arise.
The NFL Runs on Piles of Painkillers|Robert Silverman|November 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST

He spun three times, stopped on a dime, and flashed the familiar “jazz hands” pose before walking away.
Inside a Hospital for the Criminally Insane|Caitlin Dickson|September 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Thereupon Madame Guerin, feeling she had "landed" him, dropped her pose as hostess and became a matrimonial agent.
Remarkable Rogues|Charles Kingston
Even when perched high in the air on the top of a dead monarch of the forest, there is a silent dignity in their pose.
Birds and Nature Vol. 9 No. 2 [February 1901]|Various
Not long, however, whether sprite or woman, did she pose there in admiration 296 of her own face and figure.
Belford's Magazine, Volume II, No. 8, January, 1889|Various
The pose of the head expressed pride that nothing could quench.
The Border Watch|Joseph A. Altsheler
Or can it be a part of the pose inseparable from him, of which he certainly is sometimes unconscious?
A Top-Floor Idyl|George van Schaick

British Dictionary definitions for pose (1 of 2)

pose

/ (pəʊz) /

verb

to assume or cause to assume a physical attitude, as for a photograph or painting

(intr often foll by as) to pretend to be or present oneself (as something one is not)

(intr) to affect an attitude or play a part in order to impress others

(tr) to put forward, ask, or assertto pose a question

noun

a physical attitude, esp one deliberately adopted for or represented by an artist or photographer

a mode of behaviour that is adopted for effect

Word Origin for pose

C14: from Old French poser to set in place, from Late Latin pausāre to cease, put down (influenced by Latin pōnere to place)

British Dictionary definitions for pose (2 of 2)

pose

/ (pəʊz) /

verb (tr)

rare to puzzle or baffle

archaic to question closely

Word Origin for pose

C16: from obsolete appose, from Latin appōnere to put to, set against; see oppose

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for pose (1 of 3)

pose

v.1

late 14c., "suggest, propose, suppose, assume," from Old French poser "put, place, propose," a term in debating, from Late Latin pausare "to halt, rest, pause" (source also of Italian posare, Spanish posar; see pause (v.)). The Old French verb (in common with cognates in Spanish, Italian, Portuguese) acquired the sense of Latin ponere "to put, place," by confusion of the similar stems. Meaning "put in a certain position" is from early 15c. Sense of "assume a certain attitude" is from 1840; the transitive sense (as an artist's model, etc.) is from 1859. Related: Posed; posing.

Word Origin and History for pose (1 of 3)

pose

v.2

"to puzzle, confuse, perplex," 1590s, earlier "question, interrogate" (1520s), probably from Middle French poser "suppose, assume," from Old French poser "to put, place, set" (see pose (v.1)). Also in some cases a shortening of English appose "examine closely," and oppose. Related: Posed; posing.

Word Origin and History for pose (2 of 3)

pose

"act of posing the body," 1818, from pose (v.1), in a sense developed in the French cognate. Figuratively from 1884.

pose

verb (used without object), posed, pos·ing.

verb (used with object), posed, pos·ing.

noun

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Origin of pose

Definition for pose (2 of 3)

pose

verb (used with object), posed, pos·ing.

Origin of pose

Definition for pose (3 of 3)

posé

noun, plural po·sés [poh-zeyz; French paw-zey] /poʊˈzeɪz; French pɔˈzeɪ/. Ballet.

Origin of posé

Examples from the Web for pose

British Dictionary definitions for pose (1 of 2)

pose

verb

noun

Word Origin for pose

British Dictionary definitions for pose (2 of 2)

pose

verb (tr)

Word Origin for pose

Word Origin and History for pose (1 of 3)

pose

Word Origin and History for pose (1 of 3)

pose

Word Origin and History for pose (2 of 3)

pose

pose

verb (used with object), posed, pos·ing.

noun

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Origin of pose

Definition for.css-ylq2vz{color:#1a1a1a;} pose (2 of 3)

pose

verb (used with object), posed, pos·ing.

Origin of pose

Definition for pose (3 of 3)

posé

noun, plural po·sés [poh-zeyz; French paw-zey] /poʊˈzeɪz; French pɔˈzeɪ/. Ballet.

Origin of posé

Examples from the Web for pose

British Dictionary definitions for pose (1 of 2)

pose

verb

noun

Word Origin for pose

British Dictionary definitions for pose (2 of 2)

pose

verb (tr)

Word Origin for pose

Word Origin and History for pose (1 of 3)

pose

Word Origin and History for pose (1 of 3)

pose

Word Origin and History for pose (2 of 3)

pose

Definition for pose (2 of 3)