Dictionary
Thesaurus
Quotes
Encyclopedia
Translator
Did you know: What infamous fruit has a mighty stink, yet can also taste like banana and caramel?

art

 - 23 dictionary results

art

1[ahrt]
–noun
1.
the quality, production, expression, or realm, according to aesthetic principles, of what is beautiful, appealing, or of more than ordinary significance.
2.
the class of objects subject to aesthetic criteria; works of art collectively, as paintings, sculptures, or drawings: a museum of art; an art collection.
3.
a field, genre, or category of art: Dance is an art.
4.
the fine arts collectively, often excluding architecture: art and architecture.
5.
any field using the skills or techniques of art: advertising art; industrial art.
6.
(in printed matter) illustrative or decorative material: Is there any art with the copy for this story?
7.
the principles or methods governing any craft or branch of learning: the art of baking; the art of selling.
8.
the craft or trade using these principles or methods.
9.
skill in conducting any human activity: a master at the art of conversation.
10.
a branch of learning or university study, esp. one of the fine arts or the humanities, as music, philosophy, or literature.
11.
arts,
a.
(used with a singular verb) the humanities: a college of arts and sciences.
b.
(used with a plural verb) liberal arts.
12.
skilled workmanship, execution, or agency, as distinguished from nature.
13.
trickery; cunning: glib and devious art.
14.
studied action; artificiality in behavior.
15.
an artifice or artful device: the innumerable arts and wiles of politics.
16.
Archaic. science, learning, or scholarship.

Origin:
1175–1225; ME < OF, acc. of ars < L ars (nom.), artem (acc.)

art

2[ahrt]
–verbArchaic.
2nd pers. sing. pres. indic. of be.

Origin:
bef. 950; ME; OE eart, equiv. to ear- (see are1) + -t ending of 2nd pers. sing.

Art

[ahrt]
–noun
a male given name, form of Arthur.

ART

Linguistics.
article: often used to represent the class of determiners, including words such as this, that, and some as well as the articles a, an, and the.

-art

var. of -ard: braggart.

art.

pluralarts. for 1.
1.
article; articles.

be

[bee; unstressed bee, bi] verb and auxiliary verb,present singular 1st personam, 2ndare or (Archaic) art, 3rdis, present pluralare; past singular 1st personwas, 2ndwere or (Archaic) wast or wert, 3rdwas, past pluralwere; present subjunctivebe; past subjunctive singular 1st personwere, 2ndwere or (Archaic) wert, 3rdwere; past subjunctive pluralwere; past participlebeen; present participlebe·ing.
–verb (used without object)
1.
to exist or live: Shakespeare's “To be or not to be” is the ultimate question.
2.
to take place; happen; occur: The wedding was last week.
3.
to occupy a place or position: The book is on the table.
4.
to continue or remain as before: Let things be.
5.
to belong; attend; befall: May good fortune be with you.
6.
(used as a copula to connect the subject with its predicate adjective, or predicate nominative, in order to describe, identify, or amplify the subject): Martha is tall. John is president. This is she.
7.
(used as a copula to introduce or form interrogative or imperative sentences): Is that right? Be quiet! Don't be facetious.
–auxiliary verb
8.
(used with the present participle of another verb to form the progressive tense): I am waiting.
9.
(used with the present participle or infinitive of the principal verb to indicate future action): She is visiting there next week. He is to see me today.
10.
(used with the past participle of another verb to form the passive voice): The date was fixed. It must be done.
11.
(used in archaic or literary constructions with some intransitive verbs to form the perfect tense): He is come. Agamemnon to the wars is gone.

Origin:
bef. 900; ME been, OE bēon (bēo- (akin to OFris, OHG bim, G bin, OS bium, biom (I) am, OE, OHG, OS būan, ON būa reside, L fuī (I) have been, Gk phy- grow, become, OIr boí (he) was, Skt bhávati (he) becomes, is, Lith búti to be, OCS byti, Pers būd was)) + -n inf. suffix. See am, is, are1, was, were

be, bee.


See me.

-ard

a suffix forming nouns that denote persons who regularly engage in an activity, or who are characterized in a certain way, as indicated by the stem; now usually pejorative: coward; dullard; drunkard; wizard.
Also, -art.


Origin:
ME < OF, prob. extracted from Frankish compound personal names; cf. OHG Adalhart (F Alard), Bernhart (F Bernard), with 2d element -hart lit., strong, hardy, hard (c. OE -heard in names), often merely as intensifier of quality denoted in 1st element.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To art
World English Dictionary
art1 (ɑːt) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
n
1.  a.  the creation of works of beauty or other special significance
 b.  (as modifier): an art movement
2.  the exercise of human skill (as distinguished from nature)
3.  imaginative skill as applied to representations of the natural world or figments of the imagination
4.  a.  the products of man's creative activities; works of art collectively, esp of the visual arts, sometimes also music, drama, dance, and literature
 b.  arts See also fine art (as modifier): an art gallery
5.  excellence or aesthetic merit of conception or execution as exemplified by such works
6.  any branch of the visual arts, esp painting
7.  (modifier) intended to be artistic or decorative: art needlework
8.  a.  any field using the techniques of art to display artistic qualities: advertising art
 b.  (as modifier): an art film
9.  journalism photographs or other illustrations in a newspaper, etc
10.  method, facility, or knack: the art of threading a needle; the art of writing letters
11.  the system of rules or principles governing a particular human activity: the art of government
12.  artfulness; cunning
13.  get something down to a fine art to become highly proficient at something through practice
 
[C13: from Old French, from Latin ars craftsmanship]

art2 (ɑːt) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
vb
archaic (used with the pronoun thou) a singular form of the present tense (indicative mood) of be
 
[Old English eart, part of bēon to be]

ART
 
abbreviation for
assisted reproductive technology

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

be
O.E. beon, beom, bion "be, exist, come to be, become," from P.Gmc. *beo-, *beu-. This "b-root" is from PIE base *bheu-, *bhu- "grow, come into being, become," and in addition to the words in English it yielded German present first and second person sing. (bin, bist, from O.H.G. bim "I am," bist "thou art"), L. perf. tenses of esse (fui "I was," etc.), O.C.S. byti "be," Gk. phu- "become," O.Ir. bi'u "I am," Lith. bu'ti "to be," Rus. byt' "to be," etc. It also is behind Skt. bhavah "becoming," bhavati "becomes, happens," bhumih "earth, world."

The modern verb in its entirety represents the merger of two once-distinct verbs, the "b-root" represented by be and the am/was verb, which was itself a conglomerate. Roger Lass ("Old English") describes the verb as "a collection of semantically related paradigm fragments," while Weekley calls it "an accidental conglomeration from the different Old English dial[ect]s." It is the most irregular verb in Mod.E. and the most common. Collective in all Germanic languages, it has eight different forms in Modern English:

BE (infinitive, subjunctive, imperative)
AM (present 1st person singular)
ARE (present 2nd person singular and all plural)
IS (present 3rd person singular)
WAS (past 1st and 3rd persons singular)
WERE (past 2nd person singular, all plural; subjunctive)
BEING (progressive & present participle; gerund)
BEEN (perfect participle).

The paradigm in O.E. was:

SING.PL.
1st pres.ic eom
ic beo
we sind(on)
we beoð
2nd pres.þu eart
þu bist
ge sind(on)
ge beoð
3rd pres.he is
he bið
hie sind(on)
hie beoð
1st pret.ic wæswe wæron
2nd pret.þu wærege waeron
3rd pret.heo wæshie wæron
1st pret. subj.ic wærewe wæren
2nd pret. subj.þu wærege wæren
3rd pret. subj.Egcferð wærehie wæren


The "b-root" had no past tense in O.E., but often served as future tense of am/was. In 13c. it took the place of the infinitive, participle and imperative forms of am/was. Later its plural forms (we beth, ye ben, they be) became standard in M.E. and it made inroads into the singular (I be, thou beest, he beth), but forms of are claimed this turf in the 1500s and replaced be in the plural. For the origin and evolution of the am/was branches of this tangle, see am and was.
"That but this blow Might be the be all, and the end all." ["Macbeth" I.vii.5]

art
early 13c., "skill as a result of learning or practice," from O.Fr. art, from L. artem (nom. ars) "art, skill, craft," from PIE *ar-ti- (cf. Skt. rtih "manner, mode;" Gk. arti "just," artios "complete;" Armenian arnam "make;" Ger. art "manner, mode"), from base *ar- "fit together, join" (see arm (1)). In M.E. usually with sense of "skill in scholarship and learning" (c.1300), especially in the seven sciences, or liberal arts. This sense remains in Bachelor of Arts, etc. Meaning "human workmanship" (as opposed to nature) is from late 14c. Sense of "cunning and trickery" first attested c.1600. Meaning "skill in creative arts" is first recorded 1620; esp. of painting, sculpture, etc., from 1660s. Broader sense of the word remains in artless (1580s). As an adj. meaning "produced with conscious artistry (as opposed to popular or folk) it is attested from 1890, possibly from infl. of Ger. kunstlied "art song" (cf. art film, 1960; art rock, c.1970). Fine arts, "those which appeal to the mind and the imagination" first recorded 1767. Expression art for art's sake (1836) translates Fr. l'art pour l'art. First record of art critic is from 1865. Arts and crafts "decorative design and handcraft" first attested in the Arts and Crafts Exhibition Society, founded in London, 1888.
"Supreme art is a traditional statement of certain heroic and religious truths, passed on from age to age, modified by individual genius, but never abandoned. The revolt of individualism came because the tradition had become degraded, or rather because a spurious copy had been accepted in its stead." [William Butler Yeats]

art
second person present indicative of be; see be.

-ard
also -art, from O.Fr. -ard, -art, from Ger. -hard, -hart "hardy," often forming the second element in personal names, used as an intensifier, but in M.H.G. and Du. used as a pejorative element in common nouns, and thus passing into M.E. in bastard, coward, etc. It thus became a living element in English, e.g. buzzard, drunkard.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Medical Dictionary

ART definition

Function: abbreviation
accredited record technician

BE definition

Function: abbreviation
1 barium enema
2 below elbow
3 board-eligible
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2007 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source

Be
The symbol for the element beryllium.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
Science Dictionary
beryllium   (bə-rĭl'ē-əm)  Pronunciation Key 
Symbol Be
A hard, lightweight, steel-gray metallic element of the alkaline-earth group, found in various minerals, especially beryl. It has a high melting point and is corrosion-resistant. Beryllium is used to make sturdy, lightweight alloys and aerospace structural materials. It is also used as a neutron moderator in nuclear reactors. Atomic number 4; atomic weight 9.0122; melting point 1,278°C; boiling point 2,970°C; specific gravity 1.848; valence 2. See Periodic Table.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: art
Function: abbreviation
article
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source
Computing Dictionary

ART definition

language
A real-time functional language. It timestamps each data value when it was created.
["Applicative Real-Time Programming", M. Broy, PROC IFIP 1983, N-H].
(1996-01-15)

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © Denis Howe 2010 http://foldoc.org
Cite This Source
Abbreviations & Acronyms
ART
  1. airborne radiation thermometer

  2. assisted reproductive technology

The American Heritage® Abbreviations Dictionary, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Idioms & Phrases

art

see fine art; state of the art.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see art on Thesaurus | Reference