con·tour

[kon-toor]
noun
1.
the outline of a figure or body; the edge or line that defines or bounds a shape or object.
3.
Phonetics. a distinctive pattern of changes in pitch, stress, or tone extending across all or part of an utterance, especially across a sentence, and contributing to meaning.
verb (used with object)
4.
to mark with contour lines.
5.
to make or form the contour or outline of.
6.
to build (a road, railroad track, etc.) in conformity with the contour of the land.
7.
to mold or shape so as to fit a certain configuration: cars with seats that are contoured for comfort.
00:10
Contour is always a great word to know.
So is resonant. Does it mean:
a vowel or a voiced consonant or semivowel that is neither a stop nor an affricate
articulation accompanied by an audible puff of breath, as in the h-sound of how or in the release of initial stops, as in the k-sound of key
adjective
8.
molded or shaped to fit a particular contour or form: contour seats.
9.
Agriculture. of or used in a system of plowing, cultivating, sowing, etc., along the contour lines of the land in order to trap water runoff and prevent erosion.

Origin:
1655–65; < French, equivalent to con- con- + tour a turn (see tour), modeled on Italian contorno, derivative of contornare to outline; see turn

re·con·tour, verb (used with object)
un·con·toured, adjective


1. configuration, form, boundary.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
contour (ˈkɒntʊə) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
n
1.  the outline of a mass of land, figure, or body; a defining line
2.  a.  See contour line
 b.  (as modifier): a contour map
3.  (often plural) the shape or surface, esp of a curving form: the contours of her body were full and round
4.  (modifier) shaped to fit the form of something: a contour chair
5.  a rising and falling variation pattern, as in music and intonation
 
vb
6.  to shape so as to form the contour of something
7.  to mark contour lines on
8.  to construct (a road, railway, etc) to follow the outline of the land
 
[C17: from French, from Italian contorno, from contornare to sketch, from tornare to turn]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

contour
1660s, a term in painting and sculpture, from Fr. contour "circumference, outline," from M.L. contornare "to go around," from L. com- intens. prefix + tornare "to turn in a lathe," from tornus "lathe" (see turn). First recorded application to topography is from 1769. Related:
Contoured (1725). Contour line in geography is from 1844.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
Snap on an elevation layer-contour lines-and the landscape jumps into relief.
Here is a statistical explanation of contour grouping.
There is no marked change as far as the general contour is concerned.
Complete recovery can be expected, with the scalp regaining its normal contour.
Images for contour
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