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单词 figure
释义

figuren.

Brit. /ˈfɪɡə/, /ˈfɪɡjʊə/, U.S. /ˈfɪɡjər/
Forms: Middle English vig(o)ur, (Middle English wygur), Middle English fig(o)ur, (Middle English fegure), Middle English–1500s fygure, Middle English– figure.
Etymology: < French figure (= Provencal, Spanish, Italian figura ), < Latin figūra , < *fig- short stem of fingĕre : see feign v.The Latin word was the ordinary rendering of Greek σχῆμα (see scheme n.1) in its many technical uses; several of the senses below are traceable, wholly or in part, to Greek philosophy.
I. Form, shape.
1.
a. The form of anything as determined by the outline; external form; shape generally; spec. figure of the earth: see geoid n. and quot. 1931.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > [noun]
hue971
shapec1050
form1297
casta1300
entailc1320
fashionc1320
featurec1325
tailc1325
suitc1330
figuringc1385
figure1393
makinga1398
fasurec1400
facea1402
makec1425
proportionc1425
figuration?a1475
protracture1551
physiognomy1567
set1567
portraiturea1578
imagerya1592
model1597
plasmature1610
figurature1642
scheme1655
morphosis1675
turn1675
plasma1712
mould1725
format1936
1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis III. 52 But yet it [a statue] was as in figure Most lich to mannes creature.
1477 Earl Rivers tr. Dictes or Sayengis Philosophhres (Caxton) (1877) lf. 71 A man that is in a derke kaue may not se his propre figure.
1535 Bible (Coverdale) Ezek. x. 22 The figure of their faces was, euen as I had sene them.
1626 F. Bacon Sylua Syluarum §221 The Figure of a Bell partaketh of the Pyramis.
1697 W. Dampier New Voy. around World xx. 537 Their Faces are of a flat oval Figure.
1698 J. Keill Exam. Theory Earth (1734) 289 The Theorist..had deduced its [the Earth's] true Figure from its true causes.
1705 G. Cheyne Philos. Princ. Nat. Relig. i. 57 By this Gravitation, Bodies on this Globe will press towards its Center, tho' not exactly thither neither, by reason of the oblate spheroidical Figure of the Earth.
1756 T. Nugent Grand Tour I. 164 The figure of the city is an oblong square.
1830 H. Kater & D. Lardner Treat. Mechanics i. 5 Bodies having very different volumes may have the same figure.
1878 T. H. Huxley Physiography (ed. 2) xix. 318 In addition to this change of size..the figure of the ship suffers a change.
1931 Bull. Nat. Res. Counc. lxxviii. vii. 113 Figure of the Earth.—The defining elements of the mathematical surface which approximates the geoidal surface. The figure of the earth has been proved to be approximately an oblate spheroid.
b. In generalized sense, as an attribute of body.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > [noun] > as an attribute
figure1471
fashion1577
idea1594
1471 G. Ripley Compound of Alchymy iii, in E. Ashmole Theatrum Chem. Britannicum (1652) 141 Both fygure and ponderosyte.
1690 J. Locke Ess. Humane Understanding ii. xxx. 171 Solidity, and Extension, and the termination of it, Figure.
1744 J. Harris Three Treat. ii. ii. 61 Such Things..as are peculiarly characterised by Figure and Colour.
1831 D. Brewster Treat. Optics xvii. §90. 147 Crystals whose..simplest form had only one axis of figure.
1875 B. Jowett tr. Plato Dialogues (ed. 2) I. 275 Figure is the only thing that always follows colour.
†c. Appearance, aspect; also, attitude, posture.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > sight and vision > thing seen > appearance or aspect > [noun]
onseneeOE
bleea1000
shapeOE
ylikeOE
laitc1175
semblanta1225
sightc1275
fare1297
showingc1300
specea1325
parelc1330
guise1340
countenance1362
semblance?a1366
apparel1377
regardc1380
apparencec1384
imagec1384
spicec1384
overseeminga1398
kenninga1400
seemingc1400
visage1422
rinda1450
semenauntc1450
'pearance1456
outwardc1475
representation1489
favour?a1500
figurea1522
assemblant1523
prospect?1533
respect1535
visure1545
perceiverance1546
outwardshine1549
view1556
species1559
utter-shape1566
look1567
physiognomy1567
face1572
paintry1573
visor1575
mienc1586
superficies?1589
behaviour1590
aspect1594
complexion1597
confrontment1604
show1604
aira1616
beseeminga1616
formality1615
resemblancea1616
blush1620
upcomea1630
presentment1637
scheme1655
sensation1662
visibility1669
plumage1707
facies1727
remark1748
extrinsica1797
exterior1801
showance1820
the cut of one's jib1823
personnel1839
personal appearance1842
what-like1853
look-see1898
outwall1933
visuality1938
prosopon1947
the world > space > relative position > posture > [noun]
standing1540
gesture?1548
site1573
posture1605
positure1621
figure1658
pose1818
body mechanics1922
a1522 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid (1957) v. xiii. 13 The seys figur was abhominabill.
1658 Sir T. Browne Hydriotaphia: Urne-buriall iv. 58 Some Christians..decline the figure of rest, and make choice of an erect posture.
a1680 S. Charnock Several Disc. Existence of God (1682) 762 To have devout figures of the face, and uncomely postures of the soul.
d. transferred. The ‘shape’, state (of a matter). rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > existence > state or condition > [noun]
statec1225
estatec1230
farea1325
casec1325
beingc1330
degreec1330
condition1340
suita1375
stature?a1513
existence1530
affection?1543
existency1587
subsistence1597
consistence1626
subsistency1628
tone1641
consistency1690
attitude1744
situation1765
working order1784
faring1811
status1837
figure1858
1858 T. Carlyle Hist. Friedrich II of Prussia I. iii. iii. 212 As to Friedrich's Pomeranian quarrel, this is the figure of it.
2. Geometry. A definite form constituted by a given line or continuous series of lines so arranged as to enclose a superficial space, or by a given surface or series of surfaces enclosing a space of three dimensions; any of the classes or species of such forms, as the triangle, circle, cube, sphere, etc.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > number > geometry > shape or figure > [noun]
figure1340
numbera1398
species1660
simplex1905
society > communication > representation > a plastic or graphic representation > three-dimensional representation > [noun]
figure1340
model1611
the world > relative properties > number > geometry > shape or figure > [noun] > two-dimensional
figure1340
platform1551
rectilinear1682
flata1690
lineatea1690
reptile1963
1340 Ayenbite (1866) 234 Ine þe rounde figure: þe ende went ayen to his ginninge.
1551 R. Record Pathway to Knowl. i. Defin. Figures..be made of pricks, lines or platte formes.
1570 H. Billingsley tr. Euclid Elements Geom. i. f. 3 Of all figures a circle is the most perfect.
1603 P. Holland tr. Plutarch Morals 814 A Figure is the superficies, circumscription, and accomplished lineament of a bodie.
1714 R. Steele Englishman No. 46 That beautiful Figure in Architecture called a Pyramid.
1809–10 S. T. Coleridge Friend (1865) 97 A circle is..a figure constituted by the circumvolution of a straight line with its one end fixed.
1823 H. J. Brooke Familiar Introd. Crystallogr. 137 The new figures would be octahedrons.
1840 D. Lardner Treat. Geom. 134 A figure may be constructed similar to a given figure.
†3. The proper or distinctive shape or appearance (of a person or thing). Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > [noun] > proper or distinctive
figure1340
the world > physical sensation > sight and vision > thing seen > appearance or aspect > [noun] > characteristic
shapea1000
figure1340
resemblancea1393
phenomenology1964
1340 R. Rolle Pricke of Conscience 2320 A devel in his fygur right.
c1386 G. Chaucer Monk's Tale 232 Than..God..him [Nebuchadnezzar] restored to his regne and his figure.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 22148 O thinges sere þair naturs Turnd to be in sere figurs.
a1400–50 Alexander 360 Þe figour of a freke he sall take eftire.
c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (Roxb.) iv. 13 Scho bad hem þat he schuld..hafe na drede of hir, what figure so euer he sawe hir.
1475 Bk. Noblesse (1860) 21 Wonderfulle entreprises..that Hercules did, whiche is writen in figure of a poesy.
1600 W. Shakespeare Much Ado about Nothing i. i. 14 Doing in the figure of a lamb, the feats of a lion. View more context for this quotation
1611 Bible (King James) Isa. xliv. 13 The carpenter..maketh it after the figure of a man. View more context for this quotation
4.
a. Of a living being: Bodily shape, occasionally including appearance and bearing. Now chiefly of persons.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > bodily shape or physique > [noun]
featurec1325
making1340
staturec1380
statea1387
bonea1400
figurec1400
makec1425
corpulence1477
corsage1481
makdom1488
mouldc1550
corporature1555
frame1566
dimension1600
limit1608
set1611
timber1612
compact1646
taille1663
fabric1695
moulding1815
physique1826
tournure1827
build1832
form1849
body type1866
body build1907
somatotype1940
size1985
c1400 (?c1380) Pearl l. 746 Quo formed þe þy fayre fygure?
1483 W. Caxton tr. J. de Voragine Golden Legende 283 b/1 A monk of a ryght honourable fygure and parure.
1484 W. Caxton tr. Subtyl Historyes & Fables Esope iv. iv To the [the pecok] they [the goddes] haue gyuen fayr fygure.
c1515 Ld. Berners tr. Bk. Duke Huon of Burdeux (1882–7) xlii. 140 Yf I shold dyscryue his foule fygure at length.
1637 T. Nabbes Microcosmus ii. C ij When other creatures..Look downwards on't, [thou] hast an erected figure.
1740 Ld. Chesterfield Let. 20 Oct. (1932) (modernized text) 427 [Poets] represent, as persons, the passions,..and many other things that have no figures nor persons belonging to them.
1774 O. Goldsmith Hist. Earth II. 106 There is little known exactly with regard to the proportion of the human figure.
1774 O. Goldsmith Hist. Earth IV. 24 Few readers..are not as well acquainted with the figure of a Squirrel.
1863 F. A. Kemble Jrnl. Resid. Georgian Plantation 42 The figures of some of the women are handsome.
1869 C. Boutell tr. J. P. Lacombe Arms & Armour vii. 109 This hauberk was adjusted to the figure by a belt.
1888 J. W. Burgon Lives Twelve Good Men I. ii. 140 His dignified aspect and commanding figure.
b. The bodily frame, considered with regard to its appearance.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > [noun] > with regard to appearance
form1297
personc1390
personage1461
moul1565
mould1580
shape1602
flesha1616
habit1652
figure1717
1717 A. Pope tr. Homer Iliad III. ix. 71 Wise Nestor then his Rev'rend Figure rear'd.
1728 A. Pope Dunciad ii. 50 So lab'ring on, with shoulders, hands, and head, Wide as a windmill all his figure spread.
5.
a. An embodied (human) form; a person considered with regard to visible form or appearance.
ΘΚΠ
the world > people > person > [noun] > with reference to appearance
figurea1325
personagea1522
presence1705
spectre1807
a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 1006 In ðe dale of mambre Sag abraham figures ðre.
c1420 Anturs of Arth. xi Ho was a figure of flesche, fayrest of alle.
a1450 (c1410) H. Lovelich Hist. Holy Grail xliii. l. 303 The fegure þat there-Owt gan gon.
1604 W. Shakespeare Hamlet i. i. 106 + 2 This portentous figure Comes armed through our watch.
1673 J. Dryden Marriage a-la-Mode iii. i. 36 What a figure of a man is there!
1730 A. Gordon tr. F. S. Maffei Compl. Hist. Anc. Amphitheatres 50 Two Figures..in the Action of going into the Amphitheatre.
1753 S. Richardson Hist. Sir Charles Grandison IV. xxi. 153 She is a very fine figure of a woman.
1768 L. Sterne Sentimental Journey II. 104 A tall figure of a philosophic serious, adust look.
1877 ‘Rita’ Vivienne I. iv. 59 He saw a figure leaning against the embrasure of one of the windows.
b. colloquial. A person of grotesque or untidy appearance. figure of fun: a ludicrous personage, an oddity.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > lack of beauty > [noun] > grotesqueness > person
mammet1461
scarecrow1590
antic1597
fright1751
figure1774
jigger1825
guy1836
flibbertigibbet1878
worricow1894
the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > derision, ridicule, or mockery > fact or condition of being mocked or ridiculed > [noun] > state or quality of being ridiculous > ridiculous person
didapper1589
antic1597
zany1606
balatron1623
figure of fun1811
sketch1917
Herbert1960
1774 F. Burney Early Jrnls. & Lett. (1990) II. 60 I..obtained leave to come down, though..quite a figure.
1811 L.-M. Hawkins Countess & Gertrude I. (K.O.) 180 Figure of fun.
1813 Lady Burghersh in Lett. (1893) 61 Words can't describe the figures the women dress here of a morning.
1840 F. Trollope Widow Married I. vii. 167 What..can have induced you to make such a figure of yourself?
1861 T. Hughes Tom Brown at Oxf. II. ii. 29 The figure of fun was a middle-aged man of small stature.
1886 R. F. Burton tr. Arabian Nights' Entertainm. I. 82 Each of them is a figure o' fun after his own fashion.
6. transferred. A person as an object of mental contemplation; a personage. father-figure: see father n. Compounds 2a.
ΘΚΠ
the world > people > person > [noun] > person in question
partya1475
figure1734
persona designata1860
1734 I. Watts Reliquiæ Juveniles (1789) 216 She had rather bear an inconvenience herself, than give an uneasiness even to the meaner figures of mankind.
1847 R. W. Emerson Goethe in Wks. (1906) I. 389 And he flung into literature, in his Mephistopheles, the first organic figure that has been added for some ages.
1874 J. R. Green Short Hist. Eng. People vi. §6. 335 This utter absence of all passion..makes the figure of [Thomas] Cromwell the most terrible in our history.
1888 J. Bryce Amer. Commonw. II. liii. 328 The disappearance of this brilliant figure [sc. A. Hamilton].
7. Conspicuous appearance. In phrase to make (familiarly to cut) a figure:
a. in neutral sense, with qualifying adjective: To present a (good, bad, splendid, ridiculous, etc.) appearance; to produce an impression of specified character on the beholder.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > sight and vision > visibility > be visible [verb (intransitive)] > be clearly visible > be conspicuous
to stand fortha1425
to catch the (also a person's) eye1585
salutea1586
stare1645
to make (familiarly to cut) a figure1699
to show up1860
to jump to the eye(s)1926
to stick (or stand) out like a sore thumb1936
1699 R. Bentley Diss. Epist. Phalaris (new ed.) 361 Any Metaphor at all makes but a very bad Figure.
1710 R. Steele Tatler No. 57. ⁋1 To understand among what Sort of Men we make the best Figure.
1727 A. Hamilton New Acct. E. Indies I. xii. 134 The City makes a good figure from the Sea.
1769 O. Goldsmith Vicar of Wakefield (ed. 4) I. x. 95 When Moses has trimmed them a little, they will cut a very tolerable figure [1766 not be so contemptible].
1791 ‘G. Gambado’ Ann. Horsemanship v. 23 London Riders,..who cut..so smart a figure in a country town.
1882 W. Ballantine Some Exper. Barrister's Life I. 456 Witnesses of this kind cut but an awkward figure in the hands of a skilful counsel.
1883 S. C. Hall Retrospect Long Life I. 240 He made but a poor figure in the House.
b. To appear in a ridiculous aspect.
ΚΠ
1726 W. R. Chetwood Voy. & Adventures Capt. R. Boyle 211 It was as much as I could do to keep my Countenance at the Figure he made.
1854 C. C. Felton Familiar Lett. (1865) xlvi. 343 There is nothing more comical than the figure an English scholar cuts when he first comes to Athens.
c. To occupy a conspicuous or distinguished position; to play a prominent or important part; to attract admiration or respect. Cf. French faire figure.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > esteem > reputation > fame or renown > famous or eminent person > be or become eminent [verb (intransitive)]
shinec900
to get (also make) oneself a nameOE
blazea1387
flourisha1387
resound1562
to fame ita1625
to make a noise in the world1662
to make (familiarly to cut) a figure1691
to set the Thames on fire1720
star1815
lionize1834
to make a name for oneself1997
1691 J. Wilson Belphegor v. i, in Dramatic Wks. (1874) 368 And what figure do you make in this house?
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Æneis ii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 237 While his arms..rul'd the Counsels of the Court, I made some figure there.
1711 J. Addison Spectator No. 92. ¶8 Gentlemen that make a Figure at Will's.
1736 Bp. J. Butler Analogy of Relig. i. iii. 53 Revolutions, which make a Figure even in the History of the World.
1749 Ld. Chesterfield Let. 2 Oct. (1932) (modernized text) IV. 1414 I am very willing that you should make, but very unwilling that you should cut, a figure..: the cutting a figure being the very lowest vulgarism in the English language.
1762 H. Walpole Vertue's Anecd. Painting I. vii. 131 The first painter who seems to have made any figure in this reign.
1809 S. Smith Wks. (1859) I. 171/2 Boys, who make a considerable figure at school..often make no figure in the world.
1824 W. Irving Tales of Traveller I. 187 If they did not make much figure in talking, they did in eating.
1864 J. H. Burton Scot Abroad I. iv. 206 Kirkaldy of Grange..cut some figure in politics.
8.
a. Importance, distinction, ‘mark’. Now only with reference to persons, in phrases (somewhat archaic) man, woman of figure, a person of rank and station.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > importance > [noun] > worthy of notice
notablenessc1450
particularity1570
conspicuity1601
of remarka1618
remarkableness1623
conspicuousness1661
noise1670
figure1692
observableness1727
remarkability1838
society > society and the community > social class > nobility > rank > [noun] > person of
proudOE
higha1200
estate1399
honourablea1450
statec1449
dignitya1525
high and mighty1576
palasinc1580
titular1605
sublimity1610
dignitary1672
person of condition1673
figure1692
title1817
titulary1824
Hon.1836
high-up1882
high-ranker1899
1692 tr. C. de Saint-Évremond Misc. Ess. 192 Persons of the greatest Figure make every thing valued according to their Fancy.
a1701 H. Maundrell Journey Aleppo to Jerusalem (1703) 44 Another River, of no inconsiderable figure.
1711 J. Addison Spectator No. 122. ¶7 The Speech..was..designed..to give him a Figure in my Eye.
1748 Defoe's Tour Great Brit. (ed. 4) II. 65 Wallingford..a Place of great Figure.
a1806 H. K. White Remains (1807) II. 237 I met him..in company with persons of apparent figure.
1851 T. Carlyle Life J. Sterling ii. i. 134 Mr. Sterling, a private gentleman of some figure.
b. Style of living, ostentation, display. archaic.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > pride > ostentation > [noun] > in style of living
portc1475
figure1602
bling1999
1602 W. S. True Chron. Hist. Ld. Cromwell sig. D2 Our bountie now exceedes the figure Of common entertainments.
1720 D. Defoe Life Capt. Singleton 341 He obliged her not to increase her Figure, but live private.
1775 Life in H. Fielding Wks. I. p. xxii Fond of figure and magnificence, he incumbered himself with a large retinue of servants.
1851 T. Carlyle Life J. Sterling i. ix. 83 Lieutenant-General Barton of the Lifeguards..lived in a certain figure here in Town.
II. Represented form; image, likeness.
9.
a. The image, likeness, or representation of something material or immaterial.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > representation > [noun] > a representation
form?c1225
figurea1340
likeness1340
print1340
nebshaftc1350
resemblancea1393
visagea1400
similitude?a1425
representationc1450
simulacre1483
representa1500
semblance1513
idea1531
image1531
similitudeness1547
type1559
living image1565
portrait1567
counter-figure1573
shadow1580
countershape1587
umbrage1604
medal1608
reflex1608
remonstrance1640
transcript1646
configurationa1676
phantom1690
facsimile1801
personation1851
featuring1864
zoomorph1883
a1340 R. Rolle Psalter xxii. 4 Ill men..beris þe figure of ded.
c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (Roxb.) vii. 25 Euermare in þe middes of þam es funden þe figure of þe crosse.
1481 W. Caxton tr. Myrrour of Worlde i. iii. 9 He fourmed hym [man] to his figure and semblaunce.
1531 T. Elyot Bk. named Gouernour i. xxvi. sig. Mvv There is nat a more playne figure of idlenesse, than playinge at dise.
1609 W. Shakespeare Pericles xxii. 114 In Helycanus may you well descrie, A figure of trueth, of faith, of loyaltie. View more context for this quotation
1658 Sir T. Browne Hydriotaphia: Urne-buriall iii. 40 The mysticall Figures of Peacocks, Doves and Cocks.
1791 E. Burke Let. to Member National Assembly 32 He is their standard figure of perfection.
1878 B. Taylor Prince Deukalion Argt. 10 She is no figure of the Faith of her day.
†b. An imaginary form, a phantasm. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > perception or cognition > faculty of imagination > mental image, idea, or fancy > [noun] > imaginary form, fiction
fantasy1362
figurec1384
feigning1388
idol1577
idea1593
nonentity1604
figment1624
spectre1708
the world > physical sensation > sight and vision > thing seen > optical illusion > [noun] > an optical illusion > vision or apparition
visionc1290
fantasyc1325
imagec1350
figurec1384
beholdingc1440
semblance1489
idol1563
ghost1593
fancy1609
species1639
spectrala1656
spectre1801
eidolon1828
c1384 G. Chaucer Hous of Fame i. 48 Or if the soule..warnith al and some..Be avisions or be figures.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Merry Wives of Windsor (1623) iv. ii. 201 To scrape the figures out of your husbands braines. View more context for this quotation
10. esp. An artificial representation of the human form.
a. In sculpture: A statue, an image, an effigy. †to work by the figure (quot a1616): perhaps to operate on a wax effigy of a person, for the purpose of enchantment (Schmidt); some have referred it to sense 14.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > plastic art > statuary > [noun] > statue
likenessOE
imagec1225
figurea1300
signa1382
statuea1393
staturea1393
statutea1393
statutec1430
statuac1450
picture1517
idol1548
portraiture1548
pattern1582
portrait1585
icon1587
monument1594
simulacrum1599
statuary1599
plastic1686
make1890
a1300 E.E. Psalter xcvi[i] 7 Alle schente be..Þat mirthen in þar vigours [L. in simulacris] als.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 2290 Lik til his fader þat was ded A wygur [Fairf. vigour, Gött. vigur] was mad.
1483 W. Caxton tr. Caton A iij b To adoure the ymages and other fygures humayn.
1535 D. Lindsay Satyre 4087 (stage direct.) Heir sal Dissait be drawin up, or ellis his figure.
c1540 (?a1400) Destr. Troy 4349 The Figur of his fader was falsly honouryt.
1611 Bible (King James) 1 Kings vi. 29 Carued figures of Cherubims. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Merry Wives of Windsor (1623) iv. ii. 162 A witch..She workes by Charmes, by Spels, by th' Figure . View more context for this quotation
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics ii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 90 The breathing Figures of Corinthian Brass. View more context for this quotation
1718 Lady M. W. Montagu Let. 10 Apr. (1965) I. 401 All the Figures have their heads on.
1829 W. Scott Waverley (new ed.) I. Gen. Pref. p. lxxxii I tried..to frighten her..by introducing a figure through a trap-door.
1851 R. Hussey Rise Papal Power iii. 158 The use of figures in Churches.
b. In painting, drawing, etc.: A representation of human form (as opposed to landscape, still life, etc.). Now restricted to representation of the whole or greater part of the body.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > representation in art > [noun] > an artistic representation > of living thing > of human figure
figurec1400
personage1483
portrait1585
scheme1638
portrait picture1853
anthropomorph1894
c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (Roxb.) xi. 43 A boist of grene iasper with foure figures and viii. names of oure Lord þerin.
c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 159/2 Fygure, or lykenesse.
1676 tr. A. Thevet Prosopographia (new ed.) 75 in T. North tr. Plutarch Lives (new ed.) His Cabinet, furnished with many Pourtraitures and Figures of those who had been Travellers.
1695 J. Dryden in tr. C. A. Du Fresnoy De Arte Graphica Pref. p. xxxvii In the principal Figures of a Picture..consists the principal beauty of his [the Painter's] Work.
1705 J. Addison Remarks Italy 13 Tapestry, in which are wrought the Figures of..great Persons.
1821 W. M. Craig Lect. Drawing viii. 428 If your subject be of figures.
1832 G. Downes Lett. from Continental Countries I. 14 On the front are the figures of his wife and child.
c. Heraldry. (Cf. French figure the face.)
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > indication > insignia > heraldic devices collective > representations of human or divine beings > [noun] > face
figure1728
1728 E. Chambers Cycl. Figure, in Heraldry, a bearing in a Shield, representing, or resembling a human Face; as a Sun, a Wind, an Angel, &c.
†11.
a. Represented character; part enacted; hence, position, capacity. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > position or job > [noun] > capacity or position
nature1601
figurea1616
character1629
capacitya1649
the world > action or operation > behaviour > [noun] > assumption of behaviour or attitudes > part played or assumed by a person
personc1230
pageanta1425
partc1450
cue1581
role1606
figurea1616
mantle1658
assumption1871
society > leisure > the arts > performance arts > drama > part or character > [noun]
personc1230
parcela1400
part1488
personagea1540
quality1566
shape1604
figurea1616
cast1631
character1664
rolea1731
a1616 W. Shakespeare Tempest (1623) iii. iii. 83 Brauely the figure of this Harpie, hast thou Perform'd. View more context for this quotation
1673 J. Dryden Marriage a-la-Mode v. i. 84 Since he is a King, methinks he has assum'd another Figure.
1675 W. Temple Let. to Sir J. Williamson in Wks. (1731) II. 314 His Majesty would upon no Occasion quit the Figure of Mediator.
1711 R. Steele Spectator No. 262. ⁋6 Those who appear in the higher Figures of Life.
1720 D. Defoe Mem. Cavalier 119 Your Majesty..shall be always served by me in any Figure you please.
b. One acting a part. Obsolete. rare.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > deceit, deception, trickery > dissimulation, pretence > semblance, outward show > [noun] > one who dissembles
a wolf in a lamb's skin, in sheep's clothingc1460
figurea1513
seemera1616
fop1755
mutton dressed as lamb1811
comedian1893
faux bonhomme1916
a1513 R. Fabyan New Cronycles Eng. & Fraunce (1516) I. ccxxviii. f. cl She was there as a fygure a woman werynge that habyte without professyon of ordre.
c. A person dressed in character. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > performance arts > performer > [noun] > types of performer
pantomimus1589
amateur1757
figure1767
feature1801
débutant1824
warhorse1836
moke1890
trouper1890
chair-warmer1909
act1919
single1923
single act1952
warm-up man1959
warmer-up1960
1767 J. Penn By Way of Prevention p.v Horse-Jockeys, Italian Figures, Rope-Dancers, and Ballad-Singers.
12. An emblem, type. †in figure: in emblematical representation. †to be in figure: to be typical. †in figure to: emblematic of.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > kind or sort > individual character or quality > an individual case or instance > [noun] > typical or representative case > typical or representative thing or person
forbysenc1175
figurea1340
forbyseninga1400
samplera1400
plot1551
pattern1555
resembler1581
representative1653
specimen1654
exponent1825
type1845
typification1845
a1340 R. Rolle Psalter cxlvi. 8 He hilys halywrit wiþ figurs forto stire men to seke.
c1366 G. Chaucer A.B.C. 169 Ysaak was figure of his [Christ's] deth certeyn.
?c1450 Life St. Cuthbert (1891) l. 697 Þe ship þat beres vs in þe se, Of haly kyrke þe figure be.
1497 J. Alcock Mons Perfeccionis (de Worde) A ij This mount is in figure and sygnefyeth relygyon.
1532 T. More Confut. Tyndale in Wks. 385/1 Al thing vnto them came in figures.
1612 F. Bacon Ess. (new ed.) 59 The ancient times doe set forth in figure..the incorporacion..of counsell with Kinges.
1637 T. Nabbes Microcosmus i. C Oh gentle power..Figure of peace.
1647 J. Saltmarsh Sparkles of Glory (1847) 149 A rest or peace in figure to that glory and fulness to be revealed in us.
1651 C. Cartwright Certamen Religiosum i. 122 The Rock..was a Type and a Figure of Christ.
1730–6 in N. Bailey Dict. Britannicum
1855 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. IV. 453 It has long been usual to represent the imagination under the figure of a wing.
III. Delineated or devised form; a design or pattern.
13. A delineation illustrating the text of a book; a diagram, an illustration. When used as a reference usually abbreviated to figurative.The Latin figura = Greek σχῆμα as applied to mathematical diagrams; but the modern use is influenced by sense 9.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > book > illustration of books > [noun] > an illustration
figurec1400
baby?1600
gay1630
showa1794
illustration1817
society > communication > representation > a plastic or graphic representation > graphic representation > drawing plans or diagrams > [noun] > diagram
figurec1400
scheme1649
skiagraph1657
diagram1839
diagraph1853
schema1890
schematic1929
decision tree1957
cladogram1965
c1400 ( G. Chaucer Treat. Astrolabe (Cambr. Dd.3.53) (1872) i. §3. 4 For the more decl[a]racioun, lo here the figure.
1545 T. Raynald in tr. E. Roesslin Byrth of Mankynde Prol. sig. B.iii Not onely in wurdes, but also in lyuely and expresse figures.
1551 R. Record Pathway to Knowl. ii. Pref. The charges in cuttyng of the figures.
a1660 W. Oughtred (title) Mathematicall recreations. Or, a collection of sundrie problemes..illustrated with divers brasse figures.
1680 J. Moxon Mech. Exercises I. x. 181 As you see in the Figure at b.
1849 Sketches Nat. Hist.: Mammalia IV. 113 Two figures of skulls (Fig. 71 and 72).
1851 P. L. Simmonds (title) Ure's Cotton Manufacture..in two volumes with one hundred and fifty original figures.
1885 C. Leudesdorf tr. L. Cremona Elements Projective Geom. 81 Let in the first figure a transversal m be drawn to cut a, b, c, d in A, B, C, D respectively.
14. Astrology. A diagram of the aspects of the astrological houses; a horoscope. a figure of heaven (also the heavens): a scheme or table showing the disposition of the heavens at a given time. to cast, erect, set a figure: see the verbs.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the universe > astrology > judicial astrology > horoscope > [noun]
figure1393
horoscopec1400
theme1652
1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis III. 79 He..Through his carectes and figures The maistry and the power hadde.
1612 B. Jonson Alchemist iv. iv. sig. Kv By erection of her Figure, I gest it. View more context for this quotation
1638 W. Rawley tr. F. Bacon Hist. Nat. & Exper. Life & Death 6 The Figures of Heaven, under which they were borne.
1678 S. Butler Hudibras: Third Pt. iii. i. 27 He set a Figure to Discover If you were fled to Rye, or Dover.
1716 J. Addison Drummer ii. 21 They are casting a Figure.
1831 D. Brewster Mem. Life Newton (1855) I. ii. 21 He bought a book on Judicial Astrology..and in..perusing it he came to a figure of the Heavens.
15.
a. An arrangement of lines or other markings forming an ornamental device; one of the devices combined into a decorative pattern; also applied to similar markings produced by natural agency. Also collective. †in figure: so as to form a pattern.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > types of ornamentation > [noun] > pattern
figure1609
repeat pattern1851
repeat1855
rosette1875
society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > ornamental art and craft > pattern or design > [noun]
device1399
vicea1400
work?a1475
pattern1581
sleight1590
figure1609
design1670
wile1849
patterning1860
key band1881
maggot1925
1609 W. Shakespeare Louers Complaint in Sonnets sig. Kv Oft did she heaue her Napkin to her eyne,..Laundring the silken figures in the brine.
1625 F. Bacon Ess. (new ed.) 157 It was well said.. That speech was like Cloth of Arras, opened, and put abroad; Whereby the Imagery doth appeare in Figure; whereas in Thoughts, they lie but as in Packs.
1638 J. Milton Lycidas in Obsequies 23 in Justa Edouardo King His bonnet sedge, Inwrought with figures dim.
1655 E. Terry Voy. E.-India 365 This Seal..the great Mogol, either in a large, or lesser figure causeth to be put unto all Firmaunes.
1833 H. Martineau Loom & Lugger ii. vi. 118 A beautiful figure that velvet has, to be sure.
1855 Ld. Tennyson Brook in Maud & Other Poems 106 Sketching with her slender pointed foot Some figure..On garden gravel.
1860 J. Tyndall Glaciers of Alps ii. i. 232 The luminous figure reflected from such a surface is exceedingly beautiful.
in extended use.1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost vii. 426 Part more wise In common, rang'd in figure wedge thir way. View more context for this quotation1718 Lady M. W. Montagu Let. 10 Apr. (1965) I. 402 Their Superiour..begins a sort of Solemn dance. They all stand about him in a regular figure.
b. spec. in wood (see quots.).
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > raw material > wood > [noun] > grain
long grain1542
grain1565
felt-grain1703
silver grain1801
figure1875
fiddle-back1890
1875 Trans. & Proc. N.Z. Inst. 1874 7 185 The..point of insertion of the main lateral branches [of the kauri tree]..is cross-grained, the straight ‘grain’ of the lower part of the tree being twisted round the ‘knots’ into a great variety of..lines, and showing what cabinet-makers call ‘figure’.
1904 P. Macquoid Hist. Eng. Furnit. ii. 35 What is called ‘figure’ in oak was obtained by cutting the wood... This so-called figure in wood has the appearance of hard diagonal splashes.
1953 H. L. Edlin Forester's Handbk. ii. 29 The beautiful figure found in certain woods is simply a representation of the intricate structure of the timber. It varies according to the way in which the log is cut up.
16. Dance. One of the evolutions or movements of a dance or dancer; also, a set of evolutions; one of the divisions into which a set dance is divided.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > dancing > movements or steps > [noun] > figure
figure1636
leading1694
floor pattern1943
1636 P. Massinger Great Duke of Florence iv. i. sig. G3 Keepe your figure faire, And follow but the sample I shall set you.
1806 J. Beresford Miseries Human Life I. iii. 53 Blundering in the figure all the way down a country-dance.
1825 Anal. Lond. Ball-room 62 The figure and tune being selected, the M.C. should be informed of it.
1874 Mrs. H. Wood Master of Greylands I. 84 Such was the commencement of the figure.
17. Skating. ‘A movement, or series of movements, beginning and ending at the centre’ ( Badm. Libr., Skating 145). (In quot. 1854 with jocular allusion to sense 7.)
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > winter sports > skating > [noun] > figure-skating > figure
skate1853
figure1854
1854 J. R. Planché Camp at Olympic i. 18 Like a bold wench, resolved at any price To cut a figure, though it's but on ice.
1869 H. E. Vandervell & T. M. Witham Syst. Figure-skating ix. 164 To commence a figure the skaters stand opposite each other, as on the sides of a square.
IV. A written character. Cf. 15.
†18. gen. Applied, e.g., to a letter of the alphabet, the symbol of a musical note, a mathematical symbol, etc. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > writing > written character > [noun]
printa1382
charactc1384
character1490
figure1597
symbolc1620
graph1933
society > leisure > the arts > music > written or printed music > notation > [noun] > character in notation
figure1597
1597 T. Morley Plaine & Easie Introd. Musicke Annot. sig. ¶4v Figures in time shorter than minimes cannot be tied or enter in ligature.
1609 J. Dowland tr. A. Ornithoparchus Micrologus 39 A Breefe is a Figure, which hath a body foure-square, and wants a tayle ?.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Timon of Athens (1623) v. ii. 39 Shall..write in thee the figures of their loue, Euer to read them thine. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Timon of Athens (1623) v. iv. 5 The Charracter Ile take with wax, Our Captaine hath in euery Figure skill. View more context for this quotation
1660 tr. I. Barrow Euclide's Elements ii. 41 Seeing by reason of the figure−, that A is not [etc.].
19.
a. A numerical symbol. Originally, and still chiefly, applied to the ten symbols of the so-called Arabic notation. two (or double), three, four, etc. figures; a number amounting to ten or more, a hundred or more, a thousand or more, etc.; a sum of money indicated by such a number. man of figures: one versed in arithmetic or statistics.In Cricket, (a) phr. to get into or reach double or three figures = to make ten or a hundred runs; (b) a bowler's average.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > number > mathematical notation or symbol > [noun] > figure
rimeeOE
figure?c1225
numberc1300
digit?a1400
digitalc1450
cipher1530
term1552
terminus?a1560
significant figure1614
small figuresa1652
numeral1654
monasa1690
binary digit1796
nomial1828
supplement1868
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > cricket > batting > bat [verb (intransitive)] > score 100 or more
to get into or reach double or three figures1884
?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 159 Þe ȝiscere..makeð þer in figures of augrim.
c1305 Edmund Conf. 223 in Early Eng. Poems & Lives Saints (1862) 77 Arsmetrike radde in cours..& his figours drouȝ aldai.
c1369 G. Chaucer Bk. Duchesse 447 And recken with his figures ten.
?c1425 Crafte Nombrynge in R. Steele Earliest Arithm. in Eng. (1922) 3 In þis craft ben vsid teen figurys.
1543 R. Record Ground of Artes i. sig. A.viiv There are but .x. figures, that are vsed in arithmetike.
1600 T. Hylles Arte Vulgar Arithm. 5 b The Cipher (for so the figure o is peculiarly named, although it be generally called and accompted as a figure).
1660 J. Playford Brief Introd. Skill Musick (ed. 3) i. 36 The Figures usually placed over Notes in the Thorough-Bass of Songs.
1746 J. Hervey Medit. among Tombs 73 Arithmeticians have Figures to compute all the Progressions of Time.
1817 Tierney in Parl. Deb. 1357 The noble lord..could not disprove figures.
1884 Punch 5 Apr. 161/1 Mr. B., A.R.A., sends a ‘single figure’,—for which he asks three figures.
1884 James Lillywhite's Cricketers' Ann. ii. ii. 64 Lancashire, with a good batting side, could not reach three figures either time.
1955 Times 9 May 15/1 His figures..were rather battered about by Perks, who hit him far and wide against the spin.
b. figure of eight: see eight n. 3. Also attributive, as in figure of eight bandage, figure of eight shield, figure of eight suture; figure of eight moth: (see quot.).
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > Heterocera > [noun] > family Notodontidae > diloba caeruleocephala (figure of eight moth)
figure of eight moth1815
the world > health and disease > healing > medical appliances or equipment > bandage > [noun] > bandage of specific shape
cancer1706
capeline1706
spica1731
abnet1797
cravat1836
four-tailed bandage1844
figure of eight bandage1871
society > armed hostility > military equipment > armour > shield > [noun] > other types of shield
blazon?a1400
fanc1405
pavise1407
ancile1600
shield-board1872
figure of eight shield1939
1604 J. Marston Malcontent iv. ii. sig. F2 [The brawl] Why tis but two singles on the left, two on the right,..a figure of eight.
1815 W. Kirby & W. Spence Introd. Entomol. I. 196 The figure-of-eight-moth (Bombyx cæruleocephala, F.).
1871 T. Holmes Syst. Surg. (ed. 2) V. 508 The figure of eight bandage is formed of a single continuous roller.
1939 J. D. S. Pendlebury Archaeol. Crete v. 271 The great figure-of-eight shield (ἠύτε πύργος) protected the warrior from the neck to the feet.
1958 L. Cottrell Anvil of Civilisation viii. 114 Such symbols as the Double-Axe, the Figure-of-Eight Shield, and the Trident, which figure prominently in Minoan buildings of the Middle Minoan period.
c. figure (of) four: a trap for catching animals, the trigger of which is set in the shape of the figure 4. Also figure four trap and in extended use.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > equipment > trap or snare > [noun]
grinc825
trapa1000
snarea1100
swikea1100
granea1250
springec1275
gina1300
gnarea1325
stringc1325
trebuchet1362
latch?a1366
leashc1374
snarlc1380
foot gina1382
foot-grina1382
traina1393
sinewa1400
snatcha1400
foot trapa1425
haucepyc1425
slingc1425
engine1481
swar1488
frame1509
brakea1529
fang1535
fall trap1570
spring1578
box-trapa1589
spring trapa1589
sprint1599
noosec1600
springle1602
springe1607
toil1607
plage1608
deadfall1631
puppy snatch1650
snickle1681
steel trap1735
figure (of) four1743
gun-trap1749
stamp1788
stell1801
springer1813
sprent1822
livetrap1823
snaphance1831
catch pole1838
twitch-up1841
basket-trap1866
pole trap1879
steel fall1895
tread-trap1952
conibear trap1957
conibear1958
1743 J. Isham Observ. Hudsons Bay (1949) 162 One more trap their is a figure of 4 trap, which is 2 Logs Squar'd for the sides, and a Log for the top of one foot wide, which is call'd a figure of 4 trap.
1785 T. B. Hazard Diary 14 Feb. (1930) 76/2 I made and Sott atrap with a figger 4 for quails.
1834 J. J. Audubon Ornithol. Biogr. II. 60 Many of these birds are frequently offered for sale.., they being easily caught in ‘figure-of-four traps’.
1838 J. C. Neal Charcoal Sketches 38 The most beautiful notions are all lost for want of a trap; an intellectual Figgery Four.
1853 J. R. Lowell Our Own Digression D 114 So bait your moral figure-of-fours to catch the Orson public.
1865 Trans. Illinois State Agric. Soc. 1861–4 5 734 Boys..capture them by means of a ‘figure four’ trap.
1872 O. W. Holmes Poet at Breakfast-table i. 8 Rabbits are entrapped in ‘figgery fours’.
1889 J. S. Farmer Americanisms Figure Four, a hunter's trap for large game. Also called a dead-fall.
1919 H. L. Wilson Ma Pettengill viii. 243 Lew Wee..made a figure-four trap, and put something for bait on the pointed stick and set the trap.
20.
a. Hence, An amount, number, sum of money expressed in figures.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > money > sum of money > [noun]
sumc1300
sumc1300
so muchc1384
quantity1405
sum in gross (also in great)1421
summa?a1425
amount1450
sold1513
bankc1530
quantum1602
cash1677
amt.1744
figure1842
a bit1894
the world > relative properties > number > mathematical notation or symbol > [noun] > figure > amount expressed in figures
figure1842
1842 Punch 2 118/2 He may put a better dessert upon his table at a lighter figure than now.
1848 W. M. Thackeray Bk. Snobs x. 40 Accommodating a youngster..with a glandered charger at an uncommonly stiff figure.
1869 J. Tyndall Notes 9 Lect. on Light §127 The index of refraction..reached..so high a figure as 2.4.
b. to do things on the big figure, to go (or come) the big figure: to do something on a grand scale; to go the whole figure U.S., to go the whole way; to act in a thoroughgoing fashion.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > vigour or energy > act or do vigorously [verb (intransitive)] > act in thoroughgoing manner
to go the whole hog1825
to go the whole figure1831
to go the whole (also entire, etc.) animal1833
to go for the doctor1907
the world > relative properties > quantity > greatness of quantity, amount, or degree > a great quantity, amount, or degree [phrase] > on a large scale
by (also at, in) wholesale1417
on or upon a (large, small, liberal, etc.) scale1785
to do things on the big figure1831
in a big way1840
1831 Boston Transcript 28 Oct. 2/2 The opponents of the existing militia system..are ‘going it’ at New York ‘on the big figure’.
1834 Sun (N.Y.) 25 Mar. 2/3 (heading) Going the whole figure.
1836 D. Crockett Exploits & Adventures in Texas (1837) 30 When a man sets about going the big figure, halfway measures won't answer no how.
1839 Havana (N.Y.) Republ. 21 Aug. I was determined to go the hull figure, and see all.
1840 J. P. Kennedy Quodlibet xii. 163 I can tell you that he goes the whole figure against rotation in this individual..case.
1848 J. R. Bartlett Dict. Americanisms Big figure. To do things on the big figure, means to do them on a large scale.
1855 T. C. Haliburton Nature & Human Nature II. v. 142 Sally was death on lace, and old Aunt Thankful goes the whole figure for furs.
1864 J. T. Trowbridge Cudjo's Cave iii. 37 The time may come when we will have to..go the whole figure with the free north, or drift with the cotton states.
1868 Pickings from Picayune 226 When I saw that, I thought I might as well go the big figure.
a1916 H. James Ivory Tower (1917) 309 The..momentous season or scene,..in which she goes the whole figure.
c. figure of merit: a general term for a numerical expression taken as representing the performance or efficiency of a device or material (see also quot. 1865). Cf. factor of merit n. at factor n. 6c.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > advantage > efficacy > [noun] > measure of
figure of merit1865
power rating1941
1865 W. T. Brande & G. W. Cox Dict. Sci., Lit. & Art (new ed.) I. 889/1 Figure of merit, in rifle-shooting at a target, the number denoting the individual success of any rifle.
1881 H. R. Kempe Handbk. Electr. Testing (ed. 2) iii. 37 The degree of sensitiveness of any galvanometer, or its ‘figure of merit’, is determined by the amount of current which will produce one division or degree of deflection.
1911 Encycl. Brit. XXVII. 173/2 The hysteresis loss should not exceed 3·0 watts per kilogram of iron measured at a frequency of 50∼ and a flux-density of 10,000 lines per square centimetre. This is now called the ‘figure of merit’ of the iron.
1930 Engineering 7 Mar. 303/2 If figures of merit could be assigned for the various attributes of an engine..a collective efficiency or merit curve might be constructed.
1952 Drysdale & Jolley Electr. Measuring Instrum. (ed. 2) I. ii. 66 When an instrument has been designed, the designer wishes to have some criterion by which he can judge whether his design will be satisfactory in service. Some ‘figure of merit’ or means of judgment therefore appears to be necessary.
1958 E. U. Condon & H. Odishaw Handbk. Physics iv. 109/1 Frequently the inverse of the loss tangent, the quality factor Q of the dielectric,..serves as the figure of merit, especially in waveguide problems.
V. In various uses, representing the technical applications of Greek σχῆμα.
21. Rhetoric.
a. Any of the various ‘forms’ of expression, deviating from the normal arrangement or use of words, which are adopted in order to give beauty, variety, or force to a composition; e.g. Aposiopesis, Hyperbole, Metaphor, etc. Also, figure of speech.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > literature > style of language or writing > figure of speech > [noun]
tropeOE
figurec1386
image1550
scheme1553
noema1555
rhetorical figure1565
idea1642
tropics1697
feint1730
arabesque1821
society > leisure > the arts > literature > style of language or writing > figure of speech > [noun] > permitted deviation in word-form or grammar
figure of speechc1386
grammar-figure1656
c1386 G. Chaucer Clerk's Prol. 16 Your termes, your coloures, and your figures, Kepe hem in store, til [etc.].
1589 G. Puttenham Arte Eng. Poesie iii. vii. 128 Figures be the instruments of ornament in euery language.
1596 J. Harington New Disc. Aiax Prol. sig. B4 And minding to speake it shorter, by the figure of abbreuiation.
1610 Bible (Douay) II. Psalms cxiii. Comm. By the figure Apostrophe he speaketh to the sea, river, and hilles.
1665 R. Boyle Occas. Refl. Introd. Pref. sig. a5v That noble Figure of Rhetoriok [sic] call'd Hyperbole.
a1679 T. Hobbes Art of Rhetoric plainly set Forth in Art of Rhetoric (1681) iii. 146 A Figure, is Garnishing of Speech in Words, or in a Sentence.
1766 Ld. Chesterfield Let. 14 Jan. (1932) (modernized text) VI. 2705 The egotism is the usual and favourite figure of most people's rhetoric.
1795 L. Murray Eng. Gram. App. 210 Figures of Speech imply some departure from simplicity of expression.
1878 R. B. Smith Carthage 161 The proverb ‘as many slaves, so many enemies’ was, in their case, no figure of rhetoric but the stern and simple truth.
b. In a more restricted sense (with mixture of senses 9, 12): A metaphor or metaphorical mode of expression; an image, similitude.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > literature > style of language or writing > figure of speech > figures of meaning > [noun] > metaphor
figure1435
transumptionc1449
metaphora1500
tropology1519
translation1534
inversion1538
transport1589
tralation1620
iconism1656
tralatition1864
R. Misyn tr. R. Rolle Fire of Love 3 Þe flaume, whilk vndyr fygure I cald fyer.
1526 W. Bonde Pylgrimage of Perfection Pref. sig. Ai Declared it by the similitude and figure of the passage of the children of Israel from Egipt.
1611 Bible (King James) 1 Cor. iv. 6 These things..I haue in a figure transferred to my selfe. View more context for this quotation
1727 A. Pope et al. Περι Βαθους: Art of Sinking 17 in J. Swift et al. Misc.: Last Vol. That..Destroyer of fine Figures, which is known by the Name of Common Sense.
1782 J. Priestley Hist. Corruptions Christianity I. ii. 156 [These] expressions have much the air of figure and allusion.
1855 G. Brimley Ess. (1858) i. 44 Simile and figure may be regarded as a natural short-hand.
1871 B. Jowett in tr. Plato Dialogues II. 86 The old Pythagorean ethical symbols still exist as figures of speech among ourselves.
22.
a. Grammar. Any of the permitted deviations from the normal forms of words (e.g. Aphæresis, Syncope, Elision), or from the ordinary rules of construction (e.g. Ellipsis). †Formerly also figure of speech.
ΚΠ
1669 J. Milton Accedence 40 Words are somtimes encreast or diminisht by a Letter or Syllable..which are call'd Figures of Speech.
1724 N. Bailey Universal Etymol. Eng. Dict. (ed. 2)
b. plural. The name of the first form in certain Jesuit schools and colleges, divided into High (or †Great) and Low (or †Little) Figures: corresponding to the Rudiments or Accidence of other places.
ΘΚΠ
society > education > learning > learner > one attending school > [noun] > division of pupils > Roman Catholic or Jesuit > specific form
rhetoric1599
syntax1628
figures1629
grammar1629
poetry1629
rudiments1716
underlow1837
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > cricket > bowling > [noun] > bowling figures or analysis
analysis1851
figures1951
return1975
1629 J. Wadsworth Eng. Spanish Pilgrime iii. 12 I was promoted to the first forme called the Figures.
1713 in B. Ward Hist. St. Edmund's Coll. (1893) iv. 58 What we call the Accidence they call Figures, which they divide into two years, one for the lower, the second for the higher.
1716 M. Davies Crit. Hist. 2 in Athenæ Britannicæ III Their Humanity-Schools..are sub-divided, and call'd Little Figures..then great Figures or Rudiments.
1736 in E. H. Burton Life Bp. Challoner (1909) I. ii. 17 I have at this very day..39 in Figures only.
1786 T. Haydock Let. 12 Jan. in J. Gillow Haydock Papers (1888) 83 He was in low-figures before.
1893 B. Ward Hist. St. Edmund's Coll. iv. 58 The two classes of ‘Figures’ were changed very shortly after this [1713] into three classes of ‘Rudiments’... At Ushaw the older title of ‘Figures’ is now in use.
1913 Ushaw Mag. Dec. 170 The Rev. William Lamb, who for a year had taught High Figures as a professor.
1951 Ushaw Mag. Mar. 60 Low Figures Historical Society is now in its ninth year.
23. Logic. (See quot. a1856.)
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > philosophy > logic > logical syllogism > [noun] > middle term > form of syllogism determined by
figure1552
1552 T. Wilson Rule of Reason (rev. ed.) sig. Yviijv The argument, is either not wel made, in figure or in mode, or in bothe.
1589 J. Lyly Pappe with Hatchet B b 'Tis neither in moode nor figure.
1628 T. Spencer Art of Logick 258 Aristotle delivers the forme of Syllogismes..and divides them into three figures.
1663 J. Evelyn Mem. (1857) III. 141 A Reverend Father..has put Mr. Cressy's rhapsody into mode and figure.
1709 J. Swift Let. conc. Sacramental Test 21 As to that Argument..I wonder by what Figure those Gentlemen Speak.
a1856 W. Hamilton Lect. Metaphysics (1860) III. xx. 400 The forms determined by the different position of the middle term..in the premises of a syllogism, are called Figures—a name given to them by Aristotle.
24. Music. ‘Any short succession of notes, either as melody or a group of chords, which produces a single, complete, and distinct impression’ (Grove).
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > piece of music > section of piece of music > [noun]
gammec1425
strain1575
passage1776
figure1884
paragraph1959
1884 R. Prentice Musician III. 29 The first Invention is founded entirely on the opening eight-note figure.

Compounds

C1.
a. General attributive. (In sense 10.)
figure-action n.
ΚΠ
1860 J. Ruskin Mod. Painters V. 198 Heroic [landscape]..is frequently without architecture; never without figure-action, or emotion.
figure-art n.
ΚΠ
1903 Burlington Mag. Sept.–Oct. 3/1 Poetry and the figure arts seldom keep pace in their evolution.
figure-artist n.
ΚΠ
1857 ‘C. Bede’ Mr. Verdant Green Married ii. 12 Young-lady figure-artists, who usually limit their efforts to chalk-heads and crayon smudges.
figure-composition n.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > painting and drawing > painting > painting according to subject > [noun] > painting composed of figures
imagery work1560–1
figure-composition1935
1935 Burlington Mag. Nov. 211/1 In the sphere of figure-composition and light-treatment.
figure-incident n.
ΚΠ
1860 J. Ruskin Mod. Painters V. 198 Contemplative [landscape]..requires..figure incident.
figure-painting n.
figure-picture n.
ΚΠ
1873 P. G. Hamerton Intellect. Life vii. 239 The wife is with you always..the world, to you, is a figure-picture in which there is one figure, the rest is merely background.
figure-piece n.
ΚΠ
1816 J. Austen Emma I. vi. 86 Has not Mrs. Weston some inimitable figure-pieces in her drawing-room..? View more context for this quotation
1864 A. McKay Hist. Kilmarnock (ed. 4) 250 He excelled..in..landscapes, and figure-pieces.
figure-sculpture n.
ΚΠ
1874 J. T. Micklethwaite Mod. Parish Churches 111 Whether or not figure-sculpture ought to be employed in ecclesiastical architecture.
figure-study n.
ΚΠ
1884 Ruskin in Pall Mall Gaz. 10 Dec. 11/1 The vast irruption of sensual figure-study.
figure-subject n.
ΚΠ
1877 W. Jones Finger-ring Lore 374 An ivory patch-box, with figure-subject carved in relief.
b. Objective.
(a) (In sense 4.)
figure-training n.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > [noun] > art school or class
life class1842
art school1852
figure-training1871
Slade1890
1871 (title) Figure training.
(b) (In sense 10.)
figure-painter n.
ΚΠ
1770 J. Wedgwood Let. 12 May in Sel. Lett. (1965) 92 The fine figure Painters are another order of beings.
1947 W. Lewis Let. Apr. (1963) 405 Down a third [road]..the figure of a figure-painter.
(c) (In senses 10, 15.)
figure-carver n.
ΚΠ
1866–7 G. Stephens Old-Northern Runic Monuments I. ii. 511 The figure-stampers and figure carvers of the Early and still more of the Later Iron Age.
figure carving n.
ΚΠ
a1843 R. Southey Common-place Bk. (1849) 2nd Ser. 345/2 ‘To cut up a fowl in the air’... This sort of figure-carving implies abominable cookery.
figure-stamper n.
ΚΠ
1866–7 G. Stephens Old-Northern Runic Monuments I. ii. 511 The figure-stampers and figure carvers of the Early and still more of the Later Iron Age.
figure-weaving n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile manufacture > manufacture textile fabric or that which consists of > manufacture of textile fabric > [noun] > weaving > method of > figure weaving
figure-weaving1831
lappet-weaving1863
1831 G. R. Porter Treat. Silk Manuf. 234 Figure-weaving is the art of producing various patterns in the cloth.
C2. Special combinations. Also figure-caster n., figure-dance n., figure-flinger n., etc.
figure-maker n. (a) one who casts or moulds figures; (b) a maker of wooden anatomical models for artists.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > plastic art > modelling > [noun] > modeller
modelist1659
fictor1665
figure-maker1769
modeller1791
formatore1862
1769 J. Wedgwood Let. 25 June in Sel. Lett. (1965) 76 If we get these painters, and the figure makers, we shall do pretty well in those branches.
figure-servant n. a commercial clerk.Apparently an isolated use.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > writing > writer > [noun] > professional writer > types of
text-writer1463
scribelet1599
engrosser1606
under-scribe1612
answer-jobber1712
cocket writer1743
figure-servant1850
texter1884
1850 J. H. Newman Lect. Diffic. Anglicans 205 Operatives, journeymen, figure-servants and labourers.
figure-six adj. (see quot. 1851).
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > curvature > types of curvature > [adjective] > having other specific curved shape
enharpeda1529
roach-bent1575
imbricate1656
pelecoid1728
pear-shaped1731
sabre-shaped1796
fiddle-shaped1819
jug handle1846
round-shouldered1849
figure-six1851
lyriform1857
strigiliform1873
the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > beautification of the person > beautification of the hair > styles of hair > [adjective] > curled
frizzled1567
frounceda1568
becurled1645
frizzeda1653
frizzing1696
frizzly1707
buckled1753
frizzling1779
crêpé1828
figure-six1851
frizzy1870
water-waved1881
Romney1883
marcelled1909
permanently waved1929
permed1937
home perm1949
Afro1966
1851 H. Mayhew London Labour I. 36/2 The hair, they [sc. coster-lads] say..ought to be..done in ‘figure-six’ curls.
figure-skater n. one who practises figure-skating.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > winter sports > skating > [noun] > figure-skating > skater
figurer1882
figure-skater1892
1892 T. M. Witham Figure Skating in J. M. Heathcote & C. G. Tebbutt Skating (Badminton Libr. of Sports & Pastimes) iii. 45 Dry cracks..are very dangerous to the figure-skater.
figure-skating n. the art or practice of skating in figures (see 17).
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > winter sports > skating > [noun] > figure-skating
figure-skating1852
figuring1869
place-skating1895
1852 H. Spencer Gracefulness in Ess. (1891) II. 384 Early attempts..in figure-skating, are..fatiguing.
1892 T. M. Witham Figure Skating in J. M. Heathcote & C. G. Tebbutt Skating (Badminton Libr. of Sports & Pastimes) iii. 57 A figure-skating club..the members of which are mostly English.
figure-stone n. Mineralogy = agalmatolite n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > minerals > types of mineral > silicates > phyllosilicate > [noun] > talc > agalmatolite
speckstone1794
agalmatolite1801
figure-stone1805
pagodite1837
lardite1868
1805 R. Jameson Syst. Mineral. II. 604 It is brought from China, and always cut into various figures, from whence it has received the name Figurestone.
1852 L. Oliphant Journey to Katmandu 174 Amongst other minerals are corundum, figure-stone, and talc.

Draft additions 1993

Swimming. A set movement or pattern made by a group of swimmers floating in the water, for display or in competition. Cf. figure floating n. at Additions below.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > water sports except racing > [noun] > swimming in specific formations > set movement or pattern made
figure1931
1931 Swimming & Swimming Strokes (Amat. Swimming Assoc.) 104 The figures should be as symmetrical as possible.
1986 Swimming Times Sept. 42/1 Then it was straight into the water for figure practice with the competition commencing at 10.00 am.

Draft additions 1993

figure floating n. Swimming the formation of set patterns or figures by a group of swimmers floating in the water (see sense 17 above).
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > water sports except racing > [noun] > swimming in specific formations
figure floating1931
1931 Swimming & Swimming Strokes (Amat. Swimming Assoc.) 100 There is a large, unexploited field in figure floating. By this is meant the formation of patterns by human bodies floating horizontally.
1972 M. A. Jarvis Enjoy Swimming vii. 99 A combination of figure floating and stroke patterns can make an effective and enjoyable display item.

Draft additions December 2005

figure-hugging adj. that fits closely the contours of the body.
ΚΠ
1916 Washington Post 18 Mar. 7/1 The Norfolk models this spring are new and distinctive; they have a well tailored appearance and a figure-hugging military fit.
1960 Times 25 July 13/2 A soft, flowing line, still unfitted in the sense of not being figure hugging.
2002 C. Newland Snakeskin xi. 136 The girl next to her was a blonde and blue-eyed cutie, dressed in figure-hugging jeans and a boob tube, no older than twenty.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1896; most recently modified version published online March 2021).

figurev.

Brit. /ˈfɪɡə/, /ˈfɪɡjʊə/, U.S. /ˈfɪɡjər/
Etymology: < figure n.; compare Old French (and modern French) figurer (= Provençal figurar , Spanish figurar , Italian figurare , < Latin figūrāre , < figūra figure n.), which is probably the source of some of the senses.
†1.
a. transitive. To give figure to; to form, shape; to bring into shape. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > shape or give shape to [verb (transitive)]
i-schapeOE
shapec1000
afaite?c1225
feigna1300
form1340
deformc1384
proportionc1384
throwc1390
figure?a1400
parec1400
mould1408
fashion1413
portrayc1450
effigure1486
porture1489
moul1530
shapen1535
frame1553
proportionate1555
efform1578
inform1590
formate1599
to shape out1600
infigure1611
figurate1615
immodelize1649
effinge1657
effigiate1660
configure1857
carpenter1884
?a1400 Morte Arth. 2151 The faireste fygured folde that fygurede was ever.
1555 R. Eden tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Decades of Newe Worlde f. 261 The damme..by lyttle and lyttle figurethe the informe byrthe.
1645 J. Evelyn Mem. (1819) I. 186 Piedestals exquisitely cast and figur'd.
?1790 J. Imison Curious & Misc. Articles (new ed.) 155 in School of Arts (ed. 2) The bed of hones should be..very little larger than the metal intended to be figured upon it.
b. With complement: To shape into; also to shape into (a specified form). Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > shape or give shape to [verb (transitive)] > put into a certain shape
form1297
figurec1430
shape1457
cast1512
fashion1526
mould1667
set1678
modela1704
throw1804
c1430 Pilgr. Lyf Manhode (1869) i. lxxii. 42 Flesh and blood it is in sooth, but bred it and wyn it is figured.
1626 F. Bacon Sylua Syluarum §352 Some [shining wood] was found to be Firm and hard; so as it might be figured into a Cross.
2.
a. To represent in a diagram or picture.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > representation > [verb (transitive)]
depaint?c1225
paintc1275
figurec1380
resemblea1393
portraya1398
represent?a1425
impicture1523
portrait1548
shadow1553
to paint forth1558
storize1590
personate1591
limn1593
propound1594
model1604
table1607
semble1610
rendera1616
to paint out1633
person1644
present1649
to figure out1657
historize1668
to fancy out1669
to take off1680
figurate1698
refer1700
display1726
depicture1739
depict1817
actualize1848
society > communication > representation > a plastic or graphic representation > graphic representation > represent graphically [verb (transitive)]
figurec1380
draw1542
tract1611
exhibit1799
society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > painting and drawing > [verb (transitive)] > represent pictorially
figurec1380
pict1483
picture1490
describe1526
delineate1566
shadow1576
blaze1579
depicturec1593
limn1593
depaint1598
depict1631
depinge1657
picturize1796
feature1807
repicture1810
pictorialize1844
c1380 J. Wyclif Sel. Wks. III. 456 Þo holy Trinity in no manere schulde be fygurid..in þat fourme by whiche comynly hit is peyntid.
c1400 ( G. Chaucer Treat. Astrolabe (Cambr. Dd.3.53) (1872) i. §9. 6 Next this folwyth the cercle of the dayes, that ben figured in maner of degrees.
c1430 Pilgr. Lyf Manhode (1869) iv. ii. 175 Ordeyned j haue that peynted it [the beste] be heere and figured.
c1500 Melusine (1895) 364 Ryche pictures where as were fygured many a noble hystory.
1591 E. Spenser Muiopotmos in Complaints sig. V3v Arachne figur'd how Iove did abuse Europa like a Bull.
1776 W. Withering Brit. Plants (1796) IV. 111 Fucus fastigiatus of Wulfen, figured in Jacq. coll. iii. 14. 2, is perhaps the plant of Linnæus.
1815 W. Wordsworth White Doe of Rylstone ii. 26 The Sacred Cross; and figured there The five dear wounds our Lord did bear.
1851 W. B. Carpenter Man. Physiol. (ed. 2) 531 The Perch, whose Encephalon is here figured.
1882 G. M. Minchin Uniplanar Kinematics 17 Some such curve as that figured.
b. To trace, mark (a design, letter, etc.).
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > representation > a plastic or graphic representation > graphic representation > drawing plans or diagrams > make plan or diagram of [verb (transitive)] > trace or mark (a design, letter, etc.)
figure1526
1526 Bible (Tyndale) 2 Cor. iii. 7 The ministracion of deeth thorowe the letters figured in stones.
1801 R. Southey Thalaba I. v. 284 Whose windows lay in light, And of their former shape..Rude outline on the earth Figured, with long grass fringed.
3. To picture in the mind; to imagine. Const. with simple complement and object clause.Sometimes to figure to oneself: cf. French se figurer.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > perception or cognition > faculty of imagination > imagine or visualize [verb (transitive)]
seeOE
thinkOE
bethinkc1175
devise1340
portraya1375
imagec1390
dreama1393
supposea1393
imaginea1398
conceive?a1425
fantasyc1430
purposea1513
to frame to oneselfa1529
'magine1530
imaginate1541
fancy1551
surmit?1577
surmise1586
conceit?1589
propose1594
ideate1610
project1612
figurea1616
forma1616
to call up1622
propound1634
edify1645
picture1668
create1679
fancify1748
depicture1775
vision1796
to conjure up1819
conjure1820
envisage1836
to dream up1837
visualize1863
envision1921
pre-visualize1969
a1616 W. Shakespeare Measure for Measure (1623) i. ii. 51 Thou art alwayes figuring diseases in me; but..I am sound. View more context for this quotation
1637 T. Nabbes Microcosmus 111 I am transform'd into a happiness Cannot be figured.
1718 Lady M. W. Montagu Let. May (1965) I. 412 He..had..allready figur'd his Bride to himselfe with all the Deformitys in Nature.
1760 H. Walpole Corr. (ed. 3) III. cccxlvii. 332 You cannot figure a duller season.
1834 T. Carlyle Sartor Resartus i. i. 1/2 In all speculations they have tacitly figured man as a Clothed Animal.
1851 T. Carlyle Life J. Sterling i. iv. 41 I figure him a brilliant..creature.
1868 G. B. Airy Pop. Astron. (ed. 6) iii. 123 There is no difficulty at all in figuring to ourselves..that [etc.].
1886 E. Lynn Linton Paston Carew III. xiii. 279 All the pains and griefs his imagination had ever figured.
4. To portray or represent by speech or action.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > expression > [verb (transitive)]
abroachc1400
figure1475
express1549
unload1561
vent1602
speaka1616
extrinsicate1645
to set out1684
ventilate1823
exhibit1849
register1901
1475 Bk. Noblesse 21 Aventurous dedis that Hercules, as it is figured..in..the .v. booke of Boecius, toke uppon him.
1597 W. Shakespeare Richard III i. ii. 181 La. I would I knew thy heart. Glo. Tis figured in my tongue. View more context for this quotation
1634 J. Ford Chron. Hist. Perkin Warbeck i. sig. B2v Thy heart Is figur'd on thy tongue.
a1668 ? Davenant in J. Dryden Prose Wks. (1800) I. ii. 214 An heroic poem should be..like a glass of nature, figuring a more practicable virtue to us than was done by the ancients.
1894 R. H. Sherard in Westm. G. 13 June 2/1 The aficionados do all in their power to figure a Spanish audience..but these simulated enthusiasms have but a hollow ring.
†5. ‘To prefigure, foreshow’ (Johnson). Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > foresight, foreknowledge > prefiguration > prefigure [verb (transitive)]
forecomea1300
to say beforec1384
signifyc1384
pretendc1425
prefigurec1429
preostendc1429
prefigurate1530
prefigurate1530
adumbrate1537
promise1556
premonstrate1562
foresignify1565
presignify1570
shadow1574
foreshadow1577
presage1583
fore-run1590
presign1590
fore-read1591
figure1595
type forth, out1596
fore-point1601
foreshow1601
prophesy1608
foretella1616
foretypea1618
forebode1656
harbingera1657
pretypify1658
pretype1659
forespeak1667
to figure out1721
forecast1883
favour1887
precourse1888
precursea1892
1595 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 3 ii. i. 32 Three glorious suns,..In this the heauens doth figure some euent.
6. To be an image, symbol, or type of; to represent typically.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > representation > physical representation of abstraction > symbolizing > symbolizing by a type > be type of [verb (transitive)]
betokenc1175
bysenc1325
bodea1387
resemblea1393
figure1401
figurate?1548
moralize1597
typify1635
type1831
1401 Pol. Poems (Rolls) II. 63 Two perfit lyves, that actif and contemplatif comounli ben callid, ffulli figurid by Marie and Martha.
1447 O. Bokenham Lyvys Seyntys (1835) 10 These sexe vertuhs be fyguryd mystyly In the sexe wengys..Of the cherubyns.
1530 Myroure Oure Ladye (Fawkes) (1873) ii. 250 The body of her blyssed sonne..was fygured by the sayde arke.
1604 T. Dekker Magnificent Entertainm. sig. C A Personage, figuring, The Counsell of the City.
1653 H. Cogan tr. F. M. Pinto Voy. & Adventures xxxii. 129 This boy leaned on his elbow upon the Chaems chair and figured mercy.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics ii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 89 Soft Peace they [sc. olives] figure, and sweet Plenty bring. View more context for this quotation
†7. To display the form of; to exhibit a resemblance to. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > relationship > similarity > render similar to [verb (transitive)] > be like, resemble, or take after
to bear a resemblance toa1225
semblec1330
resemble1340
to look likec1390
representa1398
belikec1475
assemble1483
express1483
to take after ——1553
figure1567
assimilate1578
besib1596
imitate1601
resemblance1603
respect1604
favour1609
image1726
mirror1820
facsimile1839
turn after ——1848
picture1850
1567 J. Maplet Greene Forest f. 34 Birdes tongue is an Herbe..It figureth the tong of a Birde, whereof it hath his name. In his top it figureth a taile to looke to.
1779 T. Forrest Voy. New Guinea 54 A high island..which remarkably figures a cock's comb.
†8. To represent as resembling; to liken (a person or thing) to (another). Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > relationship > similarity > render similar to [verb (transitive)]
comparison1340
likena1382
figure1393
compare1447
comparagea1450
comparate?a1475
assemble1483
apply?1532
assimile1547
configurate1582
resemble1590
guise1606
similize1620
assimilate1630
approacha1649
consimilate1716
the mind > attention and judgement > discovery > comparison > compare [verb (transitive)] > liken
bysenc1325
anliken1340
comparison1340
liken1340
figure1393
like?c1425
semblea1440
compare1447
comparagea1450
signifya1470
comparate?a1475
figurate?a1500
resemble1533
patterna1586
symbolize with1605
assimilatec1616
similize1620
symbolize1651
similarize1806
1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis III. 118 Taurus..figured is Unto a bulle.
1520 Chron. Eng. iii. f. 24v/1 This man was cursed every ynche, and therfore he was fygured to Antecryst.
1523 Ld. Berners tr. J. Froissart Cronycles I. cccxcix. 691 Sermons made..figurynge them to the people of Israell, whome kynge Pharaon kepte long in seruytude.
9.
†a. To predicate in a metaphorical sense. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > literature > style of language or writing > figure of speech > figures of meaning > express with figure of meaning [verb (transitive)] > express metaphorically or figuratively > predicate in metaphorical sense
figurec1405
c1405 G. Chaucer Parson's Tale ⁋922 (Ellesmere) Mariage is figured betwixe Crist and holy chirche.
b. To express by a metaphor or image.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > literature > style of language or writing > figure of speech > figures of meaning > express with figure of meaning [verb (transitive)] > express metaphorically or figuratively
allude?1531
figurate1643
figure1836
metaphorize1949
1836 R. W. Emerson Prospects in Nature viii. 91 The difference..is happily figured by the schoolmen, in saying, that the knowledge of man is an evening knowledge,..but that of God is a morning knowledge.
1857 H. T. Buckle Hist. Civilisation Eng. I. vii. 225 That image of desolation under which the noble old man figured his immeasurable grief.
†10. To frame (a discourse) according to rhetorical figures; to adorn with figures of speech. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > literature > style of language or writing > figure of speech > embellish with figures [verb (transitive)]
figure1652
trope1894
1652 T. Urquhart Εκσκυβαλαυρον 279 Iconical..Cromatick, or any other way of figurating a speech by opposition, being formules of Oratory.
1727 N. Bailey Universal Etymol. Eng. Dict. II. at Figures (Theatrical) Orators..figure their Discourses.
11. To adorn or mark with figures; to embellish or ornament with a design or pattern.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > ornamental art and craft > pattern or design > pattern [verb (transitive)]
figure1480
tapis1528
overwork1579
pattern1857
1480 Wardrobe Accts. Edward IV in N. H. Nicolas Privy Purse Expenses Elizabeth of York (1830) 116 Blue velvet figured with tawny.
1610 Bible (Douay) II. Isa. xl. 19 Hath the goldsmith figured it with gold?
a1616 W. Shakespeare King John (1623) v. ii. 53 Had I seene the vaultie top of heauen Figur'd quite ore with [printed wirh] burning Meteors. View more context for this quotation
1725 E. Fenton in A. Pope et al. tr. Homer Odyssey I. iv. 808 A goblet of capacious mold, Figur'd with art to dignify the gold.
1883 Truth 31 May 769/2 Crimson satin, figured with velvet flowers.
12.
a. transitive to mark with (numerical) figures; to express or indicate by figures. Also, †to figure (a sum of money) on (a person): (slang) to total up against.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > number > mathematical notation or symbol > indicate with figures [verb (transitive)]
figure1683
the world > relative properties > number > arithmetic or algebraic operations > perform arithmetic or algebraic operations [verb (transitive)] > add or sum > against
figure1773
1683 J. Dryden & N. Lee Duke of Guise v. i. 67 So what was figur'd Twelve, to thy dull sight Appear'd full Twenty one.
1773 Gentleman's Mag. 43 654 His antagonist..figured on him (as his phrase is) at the game of two-handed whist, about £200.
1781 W. Cowper Let. 3 Oct. (1979) I. 524 Your draft is worded for twenty pounds and figured for twenty one.
b.
(a) intransitive. To use figures in arithmetic. Also transitive: to figure up (also with down): to reckon up with figures; to reckon, calculate, understand, ascertain. Also with object clause, and absol., esp. in colloquial phrase it (or that) figures, it is reasonable, likely, or understandable; it makes sense (originally and chiefly U.S.). to figure out: see 15c.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > intelligibility > be intelligible [verb (intransitive)]
to make sense1554
connect1753
it (or that) figures1854
click1916
to add up1942
jive1943
the world > relative properties > number > mathematics > calculate or solve [verb (transitive)]
rimeeOE
calcule1377
numbera1382
accounta1387
casta1400
calk1401
computate1449
suppute?a1475
reckona1513
to cast up1539
yield1542
supputate1555
practise?a1560
calculate1570
compute1579
work1582
quantulate1610
resolve1613
find1714
to work out1719
solve1737
to figure out1854
the world > relative properties > number > enumeration, reckoning, or calculation > number, calculate, or reckon [verb (transitive)]
rimeeOE
arimec885
atellc885
talec897
i-telle971
tellOE
readc1225
reckon?c1225
aima1375
numbera1382
denumber1382
accounta1393
casta1400
countc1400
umberc1400
ascribe1432
annumerate?a1475
to sum upa1475
annumbera1500
ennumber1535
reckon?1537
tally1542
compute1579
recount1581
rate1599
catalogize1602
to add up1611
suma1616
enumeratea1649
numerate1657
to run up1830
to figure out1834
figure1854
to count up1872
enumer1936
the world > relative properties > number > arithmetic > do arithmetic [verb (intransitive)]
cipher1530
count1588
arithmetizea1658
to do one's sums1818
sum1838
figure1854
the world > relative properties > number > arithmetic > treat arithmetically [verb (transitive)]
state1657
cipher1825
to figure up1854
arithmeticize1878
arithmetize1892
the mind > attention and judgement > judgement or decision > evaluation, estimation, appraisal > appraise, estimate [verb (transitive)]
talec897
ween971
takec1175
weigha1200
deem?c1225
judge?c1225
guessc1330
reta1382
accounta1387
aretc1386
assize1393
consider1398
ponder?a1400
adjudgec1440
reckonc1440
peisec1460
ponderate?a1475
poisea1483
trutinate1528
steem1535
rate?1555
sense1564
compute1604
censure1605
cast1606
cense1606
estimate1651
audit1655
state1671
balance1692
esteem1711
appraise1823
figure1854
tally1860
revalue1894
lowball1973
1854 H. Miller Schools & Schoolmasters (1858) iii. 52 He wrote and figured well.
1865 Congress. Globe 9 Feb. 671/3 I have not figured the number of square miles that there will be.
1884 Bread Winners 245 I'll figure it all up and take my pay.
1891 Fur, Fin & Feather Mar. 170 By this time Sagebrush and I had got the whole thing figured down pretty fine in our own minds.
1901 Chambers's Jrnl. Sept. 633/1 Only this morning I was figuring that the work should bring us enough to put all straight and sow next year again.
1913 N.Y. Evening Post 8 Sept. 1/6 Yale men figure that the bones have lain where found from 5,000 to 20,000 years.
1935 R. Stout League of Frightened Men xiii. 155 I couldn't figure the runt at all.
1947 R. Allen Home Made Banners iii. 18 Figure I might as well sign up tomorrow and get it over with.
1952 B. Wolfe Limbo (1953) iv. 213 That figures, all right... It's kind of a startling idea, but it figures.
1967 Boston Sunday Herald 30 Apr. iii. 10/4 Everyone has to figure her own way.
1969 C. Watson Flaxborough Crab iii. 33 ‘She's not complained to us.’ ‘That figures.’
1970 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 26 Sept. 40/4 As Champlain's party cut a wide swath through these parts, it figures that a calling card was left behind in the naming of a lake.
(b) to figure on or upon (figurative): to think over, consider; to count on, anticipate, expect. U.S.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > thought > continued thinking, reflection, contemplation > thinking about, consideration, deliberation > consider, deliberate [verb (transitive)]
i-thenchec897
showeOE
i-mune971
thinkOE
overthinkOE
takec1175
umbethinkc1175
waltc1200
bethinkc1220
wend?c1225
weighc1380
delivera1382
peisea1382
considerc1385
musec1390
to look over ——a1393
advise?c1400
debatec1400
roll?c1400
revert?a1425
advertc1425
deliberc1425
movec1425
musec1425
revolvec1425
contemplec1429
overseec1440
to think overc1440
perpend1447
roil1447
pondera1450
to eat inc1450
involvec1470
ponderate?a1475
reputec1475
counterpoise1477
poisea1483
traversec1487
umbecast1487
digest1488
undercast1489
overhalec1500
rumble1519
volve?1520
compassa1522
recount1526
trutinate1528
cast1530
expend1531
ruminate1533
concoct1534
contemplate1538
deliberate1540
revolute1553
chawa1558
to turn over1568
cud1569
cogitate1570
huik1570
chew1579
meditatec1580
discourse1581
speculate1599
theorize1599
scance1603
verse1614
pensitate1623
agitate1629
spell1633
view1637
study1659
designa1676
introspect1683
troll1685
balance1692
to figure on or upon1837
reflect1862
mull1873
to mull over1874
scour1882
mill1905
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > expect [verb (transitive)] > rely on
to presume on, upon, or of?a1475
reckon1547
lot1633
compute1674
count1711
to look to ——1782
to bargain for1801
calculate1802
to figure on or upon1904
1837 Congress. Globe App. 247/1 I..cannot understand the Secretary's report. I figured upon its data until I threw down my slate in despair.
1877 J. R. Bartlett Dict. Americanisms (ed. 4) (at cited word) ‘Figure on that’ means to consider it; to think it over. Western.
1904 G. S. Porter Freckles 241 In figuring on their not coming that day he failed to reckon with the enthusiasm of the Bird Woman.
1905 Smart Set Oct. 17/1 But I'm figurin' on gettin' hold of some more land.
1906 N.Y. Evening Post 13 Oct. 5 He is not figuring on any extensive defection on their part.
1907 Smart Set Feb. 96 I hadn't figured on that.
1909 N.Y. Evening Post 7 Jan. We always figure on supplying more lenses in July and August than in all the rest of the year.
1911 Chambers's Jrnl. Jan. 57/1 My brother and I have never figured on building large passenger-carrying machines.
1934 I. W. Hutchison North to Rime-ringed Sun x. 104 Ira had ‘figured’ (as they say in Alaska) on landing to trade at a native house.
(c) To make estimates or lay plans for. U.S.
ΚΠ
1888 Emporia (Kansas) Weekly News 16 Feb. The next evening we came to a drove of small pigs and began to figure for one.
c. trans. Music. To write figures over or under (the bass) in order to indicate the intended harmony. Cf. figured adj. 7.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > written or printed music > notation > notate [verb (transitive)] > write figures for harmony
figure1655
1655 Campion's Art of composing Musick in Parts in J. Playford Introd. Skill Musick ii. 5 You finde here only mentioned and figured a third, fift, and eight.
1881 G. A. Macfarren Counterpoint (ed. 3) v. 20 It is recommended to figure the bass throughout these exercises.
13. intr. Dance. To perform a figure or set of evolutions (see figure n. 16). Also, to figure away, down, out (see 15d).
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > dancing > movements or steps > [verb (intransitive)] > figures
figure1744
to figure out1753
braid1813
1744 Coll. Country Dances 2 Foot it again and half figure.
1780 W. Cowper Progress of Error 366 We..Teach him to fence and figure twice a week.
1819 W. Irving Sketch Bk. v. 388 The squire himself figured down several couple with a partner.
1828 H. W. Longfellow in S. Longfellow Life H. W. Longfellow (1891) I. 139 One passing regret that he cannot..figure away in the dance with the best of them.
14. intransitive.
a. To make an appearance, to appear; often with as: To appear in the character of, stand for; also, to look like. †to figure for: (a) to pose as a claimant for, pretend to; (b) to stand for, represent. to figure in: to come upon the scene. Cf. figure n. 6.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > representation > [verb (transitive)] > of the representation
representc1450
describea1536
adumbrate1537
fashion1590
to figure for1596
depaint1598
maintain1598
depicture1650
depict1871
society > morality > dueness or propriety > [verb (transitive)] > claim > claim to be
claimc1330
to figure for1596
to put ina1616
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > deceit, deception, trickery > dissimulation, pretence > pretend, dissemble [verb (intransitive)] > to be
semble1542
to figure for1596
to set up for1688
to set up1889
the world > physical sensation > sight and vision > thing seen > appearance or aspect > have (specific) appearance [verb (intransitive)] > make specific appearance
to make semblantc1230
showc1405
to make (a) countenance1470
countenance1486
to make semblancea1500
semble1542
to give a visage1549
to make resemblance1566
to set a countenance1600
figure1762
the world > physical sensation > sight and vision > visibility > be visible [verb (intransitive)] > appear or become visible > make an appearance
atewOE
splaya1400
compearc1470
to come ona1635
exhibit1656
to figure in1812
show your shapes1828
to show one's neb (also nose, etc.)1841
surface1961
1596 W. Warner Albions Eng. (rev. ed.) x. lvii. 255 The Duke of Guize, who earst had figur'd for the Crowne.
1634 I. Jones & W. Davenant Temple of Love sig. A3 On the other side an Asiatique in the habit of an Indian borderer..figured for the Asian Monarchy.
1762 O. Goldsmith Life R. Nash 50 When he first figured at Bath, there were few laws against this destructive amusement.
1812 H. Smith & J. Smith Rejected Addr. 117 Like great Jove, the leader, figuring in, Attunes to order the chaotic din.
1815 W. H. Ireland Scribbleomania 106 (note) This gentleman..formerly figured as shopman at an oil warehouse.
1826 B. Disraeli Vivian Grey I. ii. xiv. 206 On the door of one of the shabbiest houses in Jermyn-street, the name of Mr. Stapylton Toad for a long time figured.
1837 B. Disraeli Venetia I. 81 The intervening woods figured as the forests of Thessaly.
1872 J. Morley Voltaire i. 11 One of the robust and incisive constitutions, to which doubt figures as a sickness.
1893 Law Times 94 454/1 Propositions of this kind will not figure upon the Statute-book yet awhile.
b. To make a distinguished appearance; to be conspicuous or notable. Also, to figure away, off: to ‘show off’. Cf. figure n. 7.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > importance > [verb (intransitive)] > be worthy of notice
to have some show1556
figure1749
to make history1830
the mind > emotion > pride > ostentation > make ostentatious display or show off [verb (intransitive)]
brandishc1340
ruffle1484
braga1556
swash1556
flourish1563
flaunt1566
prank1567
prink1573
to shake, wag the feather1581
peacockize1598
air1605
display1608
to launch it out1608
flasha1616
to cut it out1619
flare1633
vapour1652
peacock1654
spark1676
to gallantrize it1693
bosh1709
glare1712
to cut a bosh1726
to show away1728
to figure away, off1749
parade1749
to cut a dashc1771
dash1786
to cut up1787
to cut a flash1795
to make, or cut, a splash1804
swank1809
to come out strong1825
to cut a spludge1831
to cut it (too) fat1836
pavonize1838
splurge1844
to do the grand1847
to cut a swath1848
to cut a splurge1860
to fan out1860
spread1860
skyre1871
fluster1876
to strut one's stuff1926
showboat1937
floss1938
style1968
1749 Visct. Bolingbroke Lett. Spirit Patriotism 233 Persons, who figured afterwards in the rebellion.
1763 C. Churchill Ghost iv. 143 Whilst my Lord figur'd at a race.
1771 F. Burney Early Jrnls. & Lett. (1988) I. 150 Dr. King..came in, & figured away to his own satisfaction before Mr. Garrick.
1803 T. Jefferson Writings (1830) III. 501 We shall get entangled in European politics, and figuring more, be much less happy.
1812 J. Foster Let. 7 Feb. in Life & Corr. J. Foster (1846) I. 426 Without obtaining, against the monopolists of the bar, even the opportunity of fairly figuring off in this jabber [sc.the law].
1814 T. Chalmers Evid. Christian Revel. v. 147 Such a testimony would have figured away in all our elementary treatises.
1879 Cassell's Techn. Educator (new ed.) IV. 236/1 Yorkshire then begins to figure as a cloth-making county.
15. to figure out.
†a. transitive. To display or exhibit in visionary forms or shapes. Also, To exhibit obscurely, shadow forth. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > sleeping and waking > sleep > dream > [verb (transitive)] > make a dream appear to someone > of sleep
to figure out1602
society > communication > manifestation > [verb (transitive)] > obscurely
obumbrate1632
to figure out1721
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > foresight, foreknowledge > prefiguration > prefigure [verb (transitive)]
forecomea1300
to say beforec1384
signifyc1384
pretendc1425
prefigurec1429
preostendc1429
prefigurate1530
prefigurate1530
adumbrate1537
promise1556
premonstrate1562
foresignify1565
presignify1570
shadow1574
foreshadow1577
presage1583
fore-run1590
presign1590
fore-read1591
figure1595
type forth, out1596
fore-point1601
foreshow1601
prophesy1608
foretella1616
foretypea1618
forebode1656
harbingera1657
pretypify1658
pretype1659
forespeak1667
to figure out1721
forecast1883
favour1887
precourse1888
precursea1892
1602 S. Daniel Hymens Triumph iii. ii No Time..for me to..leave for Sleep to figure out the rest.
1721 R. Keith tr. Thomas à Kempis Soliloquy of Soul xiii, in tr. Thomas à Kempis Select Pieces II. 207 If.. thou dost figure out by such a Document..somewhat..both just and reasonable.
†b. To portray, represent.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > representation > [verb (transitive)]
depaint?c1225
paintc1275
figurec1380
resemblea1393
portraya1398
represent?a1425
impicture1523
portrait1548
shadow1553
to paint forth1558
storize1590
personate1591
limn1593
propound1594
model1604
table1607
semble1610
rendera1616
to paint out1633
person1644
present1649
to figure out1657
historize1668
to fancy out1669
to take off1680
figurate1698
refer1700
display1726
depicture1739
depict1817
actualize1848
1657 W. Rand tr. P. Gassendi Mirrour of Nobility i. 59 He never..refused to suffer himself to be painted or figured out in a Statue.
a1719 J. Addison Dialogues Medals in Wks. (1721) I. ii. 490 The Emperor..holds a Globe in his hand, to figure out the Earth.
c. To work out (a sum) by means of figures; more widely, to estimate or calculate; hence, to work out, make out. Chiefly U.S.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > number > enumeration, reckoning, or calculation > number, calculate, or reckon [verb (transitive)]
rimeeOE
arimec885
atellc885
talec897
i-telle971
tellOE
readc1225
reckon?c1225
aima1375
numbera1382
denumber1382
accounta1393
casta1400
countc1400
umberc1400
ascribe1432
annumerate?a1475
to sum upa1475
annumbera1500
ennumber1535
reckon?1537
tally1542
compute1579
recount1581
rate1599
catalogize1602
to add up1611
suma1616
enumeratea1649
numerate1657
to run up1830
to figure out1834
figure1854
to count up1872
enumer1936
1834 C. A. Davis Lett. J. Downing, Major iv. 41 As I said before, I'm stump'd about that Bank of U.S.; and I want you to help me figure it out.
1873 C. H. Smith Bill Arp's Peace Papers 32 Matthy Mattiks nor his daddy couldn't figger out how long it will take you to get through accordin to your feebul progress.
1884 Punch 15 Mar. 125/1 Whitewash..on which you could..figure out a sum.
1888 ‘R. Boldrewood’ Robbery under Arms xlvii We took a couple of days figuring it out at the Hollow. Starlight had a map, and we plotted it out, and marked all the stages which could be safely made.
1902 G. H. Lorimer Lett. Merchant i. 5 You can't have to be very bright to figure out which one started the demand.
1903 N.Y. Sun 1 Nov. 5 The telegraph lines began to have trouble, and for a while the experts couldn't figure out what was the matter.
1905 Smart Set Oct. 17/2 ‘I'll figure it out after a while,’ he said. ‘It ain't exactly worryin' me sick yet.’
1910 W. M. Raine Bucky O'Connor 12 Now, this is how I figured it out.
1919 H. Jenkins John Dene of Toronto x. 156 I don't seem to be able to figure things out here as I did at T'ronto.
1966 ‘J. Hackston’ Father clears Out 87 I figured it out that he was staring at the top of the old gumtree opposite.
d. intransitive. To step out and perform a figure in dancing.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > dancing > movements or steps > [verb (intransitive)] > figures
figure1744
to figure out1753
braid1813
1753 S. Foote Englishman in Paris i. 15 When 'twas her Turn to figure out, souse she flapp'd on her Back.

Draft additions May 2001

colloquial (originally and chiefly U.S.). go figure: try to work it out, consider that puzzle; try to figure out why, how, etc. (used esp. as an invitation to consider something the speaker or writer considers bewildering, inexplicable, or ridiculous).
ΚΠ
1960 Film Q. Winter 23/1 I needed a crowd of fifty and I could only afford twenty people so I gave them umbrellas which spread everybody out... So, go figure.
1980 N.Y. Times (Nexis) 19 Oct. xi. 18/5 The success rate drops right through to the 1973 graduates, although transfers from the late 70's seem to be taking an upward turn again. Funny. Go figure.
1986 Times (Nexis) 7 Sept. He points out that the divorce cost him..over four times the cost of his illness. What does that tell us about American values? Go figure.
1988 F. Bright Singular Women 166 Go figure Hank Sayre would develop into a dashing journalist.
1994 Minnesota Monthly Sept. 100/2 Also on hand will be the Bavarian Musikmeisters, the Minneapolis Accordion Club, horse-drawn carriages, Romanian dancers, and (go figure) an Elvis impersonator.
1999 Massive (City Univ. Students' Union) Mar. 11/2 In the last election, the Tories got 18% of the votes in Scotland and have no MPs there at all, while the Lib Dems got 13% and have 10 MPs. Go figure.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1896; most recently modified version published online March 2021).
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