texture

American  

[teks-cher] / ˈtɛks tʃər /

noun

• textures
  plural

1. the visual and especially tactile quality of a surface.

   rough texture.

2. the characteristic structure of the interwoven or intertwined threads, strands, or the like, that make up a textile fabric.

   coarse texture.

3. the characteristic physical structure given to a material, an object, etc., by the size, shape, arrangement, and proportions of its parts.

   soil of a sandy texture; a cake with a heavy texture.

4. an essential or characteristic quality; essence.

5. Fine Arts.

   1. the characteristic visual and tactile quality of the surface of a work of art resulting from the way in which the materials are used.

   2. the imitation of the tactile quality of represented objects.

6. the quality given, as to a musical or literary work, by the combination or interrelation of parts or elements.

7. a rough or grainy surface quality.

8. anything produced by weaving; woven fabric.

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verb (used with object)

textured, texturing

1. to give texture or a particular texture to.

2. to make by or as if by weaving.

texture British  

/ ˈtɛkstʃə /

noun

1. the surface of a material, esp as perceived by the sense of touch

   a wall with a rough texture

2. the structure, appearance, and feel of a woven fabric

3. the general structure and disposition of the constituent parts of something

   the texture of a cake

4. the distinctive character or quality of something

   the texture of life in America

5. the nature of a surface other than smooth

   woollen cloth has plenty of texture

6. art the representation of the nature of a surface

   the painter caught the grainy texture of the sand

7. 1. music considered as the interrelationship between the horizontally presented aspects of melody and rhythm and the vertically represented aspect of harmony

      a contrapuntal texture

   2. the nature and quality of the instrumentation of a passage, piece, etc

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verb

1. (tr) to give a distinctive usually rough or grainy texture to

texture Scientific  

/ tĕks′chər /

1. The general physical appearance of a rock, especially with respect to the size, shape, size variability, and geometric arrangement of its mineral crystals (for igneous and metamorphic rocks) and of its constituent elements (for sedimentary rocks). A sandstone that forms as part of an eolian (wind-blown) deposit, for example, has a texture that reflects its small, rounded sand grains of uniform size, while a sandstone that formed as part of a fluvial deposit has a texture reflecting the presence of grains of varying sizes, with some more rounded than others.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• retexture
  verb (used with object)
• nontextural
  adjective
• semitextural
  adjective
• textural
  adjective
• textureless
  adjective
• untextural
  adjective
• nontexturally
  adverb
• semitexturally
  adverb
• texturally
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• textures
  plural

Etymology

Origin of texture

1400–50; late Middle English < Latin textūra web, equivalent to text ( us ) (past participle of texere to weave) + -ūra -ure

Explanation

Texture is the physical feel of something — smooth, rough, fuzzy, slimy, and lots of textures something in between. Sandpaper is very rough — it has a gritty, rough texture. Other things, like linoleum, have a smooth texture. Texture has to do with how an object feels and its ingredients. Texture is very important in clothes: a cotton shirt has a different texture than a polyester shirt. You can also talk about other kinds of texture, like musical texture. A symphony and a rock song have different instruments, so they have different textures.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

texture textures textured texturing

The shift has prompted complaints from some consumers over differences in taste and texture, as well as concerns about how clearly the replacement fish is being labelled.

From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026

Much like bread pudding — another of my favorite loaf-based forms — almost anything works here, especially if it’s stale enough, or toasted enough, to give you some real texture.

From Salon ● Sep. 6, 2026

Another standout ingredient in the batter is rice flour, which has a high starch content and creates a very light texture.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026

Once outside the walls of Buddyland and into the surrounding wilderness, Kelly shifts from boxy TV framing and video texture to a cinematic widescreen ratio, but the milieu still seems half-real, half-stylized.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2026

He concentrated on the texture, the way it crumbled if he pressed it too hard.

From "Anger Is a Gift" by Mark Oshiro

Life was an onslaught of bright lights, loud noises, intolerable textures and tastes.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026

I’d run my fingers across the convex pyramid textures in the same way other people lay under a weighted blanket or ate sour candy, jolting my subconscious back into the here and now.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026

You might be hearing about them because historically, berries with bumpy textures, especially raspberries and blackberries, have been linked to cyclosporiasis outbreaks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026

For those who use art to help shade in the textures of their lives — as sticking points to shape a memory — there is no better place to do so than Letterboxd.

From Salon ● Jul. 15, 2026

Sounds, colors, textures, all mash together in an enormous symphonic assault on my senses as I shrink down, smaller and smaller.

From "100 Sideways Miles" by Andrew Smith

Slouchy hoodies over gossamer layers, wired cage-like corsets, an earthy milieu of silky, quilted and textured fabrics.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026

But the characterizations are too flimsy, the world only moderately textured.

From Salon ● Aug. 26, 2026

“Inspired by Balinese architecture and thoughtfully reimagined through a distinctly Californian lens, the residence celebrates natural materials, soaring timber ceilings, expansive walls of glass, and raw, textured stone,” the listing description notes.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026

"My skin feels dull and textured and just looks more tired in general, and my chest feels heavier and sore."

From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026

The menus are printed on thick, textured paper with fancy gold lettering.

From "Pride" by Ibi Zoboi

"We think this texturing is a strong candidate for everyday use and we're ready to partner with companies to refine it for large-scale manufacturing," she said.

From Science Daily ● Apr. 22, 2026

“The texturing on the Lego brick does a really good job of antialiasing.”

From The Verge ● Aug. 20, 2022

For instance, it was Holm who in the 1960s showed the Tlingit master carver Nathan Jackson surfacing and texturing techniques with an adze.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 24, 2020

He devoted himself to piano, keyboards and guitar, texturing his recorded work with blurry drone tones until sounds seem to bleed together.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 9, 2020

Art concepts include modeling, texturing, organic and inorganic work and unwrapping – which Gaber describes as figuring out where lines will go for filling in, "kind of like paint by numbers."

From US News ● Jan. 25, 2016

Related Words

• balance
• character
• composition
• consistency
• fabric
• feeling
• makeup
• nature
• pattern
• quality
• sense
• smoothness
• structure
• surface
• taste
• touch