composition

[kom-puh-zish-uhn]

noun

1. the act of combining parts or elements to form a whole.

2. the resulting state or product.

3. manner of being composed; structure.

   This painting has an orderly composition.

4. makeup; constitution.

   His moral composition was impeccable.

5. an aggregate material formed from two or more substances.

   a composition of silver and tin.

6. a short essay written as a school exercise.

7. the act or process of producing a literary work.

8. an academic course for teaching the techniques of clear, expository writing.

9. the art of putting words and sentences together in accordance with the rules of grammar and rhetoric.

10. a piece of music.

11. the art of composing music.

12. Fine Arts.,  the organization or grouping of the different parts of a work of art so as to achieve a unified whole.

13. Grammar.,  the formation of compounds or derivatives.

    the composition of “aircraft” from “air” and “craft.”

14. a settlement by mutual agreement.

15. an agreement or compromise, especially one by which a creditor or group of creditors accepts partial payment from a debtor.

16. a sum of money so paid.

17. Printing.

    1. the setting up of type for printing.

    2. Also called pagination. the makeup of pages for printing.

18. Mathematics.,  the process of making a composite function of two given functions.

composition

/ ˌkɒmpəˈzɪʃən /

noun

1. the act of putting together or making up by combining parts or ingredients

2. something formed in this manner or the resulting state or quality; a mixture

3. the parts of which something is composed or made up; constitution

4. a work of music, art, or literature

5. the harmonious arrangement of the parts of a work of art in relation to each other and to the whole

6. a piece of writing undertaken as an academic exercise in grammatically acceptable writing; an essay

7. printing the act or technique of setting up type

8. linguistics the formation of compound words

9. logic the fallacy of inferring that the properties of the part are also true of the whole, as every member of the team has won a prize, so the team will win a prize

10. 1. a settlement by mutual consent, esp a legal agreement whereby the creditors agree to accept partial payment of a debt in full settlement

    2. the sum so agreed

11. chem the nature and proportions of the elements comprising a chemical compound

Other Word Forms

• compositional adjective
• compositionally adverb
• compositive adjective
• compositively adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of composition¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English composicioun, from Anglo-French, from Latin compositiōn-, stem of compositiō “arrangement, placement together”; equivalent to composite + -ion

Word History and Origins

Origin of composition¹

C14: from Old French, from Latin compositus; see _composite , _-ion

Example Sentences

The composition’s frantic strings and minor chords cleverly emphasize the brilliance of Oliphant’s cartoons depicting the circus of the politically obscene.

From Salon

"We absolutely need to make sure that the composition of Parliament reflects those numbers. It makes our politics much more rich."

From BBC

The lead isotopes revealed composition spikes during the late winter to spring, pointing to a lead source that was older than the lead in the rest of the tooth, the research found.

From BBC

But honestly, if I were to do something on Broadway, I would love for it to be an original composition.

From Los Angeles Times

The group dissects the photo’s cinematic, informal composition, in which Pildas aims down from a berm, the neglected buildings behind the eclectic crew shrinking into the horizon, merging with the sand.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• architecture 
• balance 
• beauty 
• configuration 
• content 
• design 
• distribution 
• formation 
• harmony 
• layout 
• rhythm 
• style