silhouette
Americannoun
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a two-dimensional representation of the outline of an object, as a cutout or configurational drawing, uniformly filled in with black, especially a black-paper, miniature cutout of the outlines of a person's face in profile.
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the outline or general shape of something.
the slim silhouette of a skyscraper.
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a dark image outlined against a lighter background.
verb (used with object)
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to show in or as if in a silhouette.
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Printing. to remove the background details from (a halftone cut) so as to produce an outline effect.
noun
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the outline of a solid figure as cast by its shadow
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an outline drawing filled in with black, often a profile portrait cut out of black paper and mounted on a light ground
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of silhouette
First recorded in 1790–1800; from French à la silhouette, after Etienne de Silhouette (1709–67), French finance minister; the surname Silhouette is ultimately from Basque Zilhoeta, from zilo, zilho, zulo “hole” + -eta, toponymic suffix
Explanation
A silhouette is dark shadow, like a silhouette of a person standing under a street lamp, or a drawing that shows only the shape of an object. A silhouette, pronounced "sil-ooh-ET," can be mysterious. After all, you can only see the shape of the person or object. So, it's fitting that the word's origin is a little mysterious, too. It was coined for Etienne de Silhouette, a French finance minister. One theory is that Silhouette decorated his chateau with the kind of dark outline drawings that now bear his name.
Vocabulary lists containing silhouette
Long Way Down
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You Name It: Eponyms
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"The Great Gatsby," Chapter 1 Vocabulary
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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.
While keeping the same basic silhouette, subsequent models had greater power and came in a variety of colors.
From Barron's • May 21, 2026
Even under a beaming sun, the ruins, aproned by the graveyard of the nearby Norman church of St. Mary’s, carve a formidable black silhouette against the sky.
From Los Angeles Times • May 14, 2026
These sunglasses from Ray-Ban and Ferrari are a bolder, thick-framed take on a classic silhouette.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 28, 2026
"The munition depicted in the video appears to be twice as long, consistent with the dimensions and silhouette of an Iranian Hoveyzeh cruise missile," Capt Hawkins said.
From BBC • Apr. 3, 2026
There’s even an arrow with the silhouette of a hiker.
From "Clairboyance" by Kristiana Kahakauwila
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.
