silhouette

1 of 2

noun

sil·​hou·​ette ˌsi-lə-ˈwet How to pronounce silhouette (audio)
1
: a likeness cut from dark material and mounted on a light ground or one sketched in outline and solidly colored in
2
: the outline of a body viewed as circumscribing a mass
the silhouette of a bird

silhouette

2 of 2

verb

silhouetted; silhouetting

transitive verb

: to represent by a silhouette
also : to project on a background like a silhouette
silhouettist noun

Did you know?

Before the age of the photograph, the silhouette, either cut from paper or painted, was the most affordable portrait that could be made. The art enjoyed a golden age in the second half of the 18th and first half of the 19th centuries, when many people collected them. Although silhouettes were well-loved, the man for whom they were named was not: Étienne de Silhouette was France's finance minister under Louis XV and was notorious for both his frugality and his hobby of making cut-paper shadow portraits. The phrase à la Silhouette came to mean "on the cheap," and portraits like the ones he produced were (satirically) bestowed with his name as well.

Choose the Right Synonym for silhouette

outline, contour, profile, silhouette mean the line that bounds and gives form to something.

outline applies to a line marking the outer limits or edges of a body or mass.

traced the outline of his hand

contour stresses the quality of an outline or a bounding surface as being smooth, jagged, curving, or sharply angled.

a car with flowing contours

profile suggests a varied and sharply defined outline against a lighter background.

a portrait of her face in profile

silhouette suggests a shape especially of a head or figure with all detail blacked out in shadow leaving only the outline clearly defined.

photograph in silhouette against a bright sky

Examples of silhouette in a Sentence

Noun the silhouettes of buildings against the sky The buildings appeared in silhouette against the sky. My piano teacher has a framed silhouette of Mozart on her wall. a portrait of my mother done in silhouette He admired the sports car's sleek silhouette. Verb in the photograph the majestic mountain is strikingly silhouetted against the setting sun
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
This results in the sun appearing as a bright ring, or annulus, around the dark silhouette of the moon, according to NASA. The Arizona Republic, 8 Mar. 2024 The oversized silhouette is ideal with skinny jeans or leggings. Jamie Allison Sanders, Peoplemag, 7 Mar. 2024 Unlike other armchairs that feature straighter silhouettes, the angles on this chair turn it into a statement piece. L. Daniela Alvarez, Better Homes & Gardens, 7 Mar. 2024 This particular international symbol consists of a single body silhouette with flames and tires covering the lower limbs. Amy Wilentz, The Atlantic, 7 Mar. 2024 It’s meant to have a boxy, loose-fitting look, perfect for tucking into the matching trousers, which are soft and stretchy enough to qualify as loungewear despite their refined silhouette. Olivia Young, Travel + Leisure, 6 Mar. 2024 Skinny silhouettes were, in hindsight, a highly unlikely proposition for mass adoption: not just physically constrictive but also revealing to a degree that could verge on a violation of privacy. Jonah Weiner, New York Times, 3 Mar. 2024 The best dressed stars—Zendaya, Chloe Sevigny, and Julianne Moore, among them—redefined classic silhouettes with interesting proportions and unexpected accessories. Christian Allaire, Vogue, 3 Mar. 2024 In reality, the vessel showcases an array of smooth, sweeping lines that create a simple, elegant silhouette. Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 28 Feb. 2024
Verb
IPhone pictures of clothes and accessories are silhouetted and noted for brand, color, and size metrics; along the way, AI gathers data points, as many as 3000 per item logged in, to help form the user's personal style algorithm. Roxanne Robinson, Forbes, 24 Feb. 2024 Which is good news for those of the moment shoe silhouettes that aren’t boots, like ballerinas, driving loafers, and little pumps. Alexis Bennett Parker, Vogue, 30 Jan. 2024 Jenna also shared a photo of herself silhouetted against the sun while posing in the ocean with one of her daughters. Charna Flam, Peoplemag, 27 Dec. 2023 At sunset, bare branches stood silhouetted against the orange of the western sky. Martin Weil, Washington Post, 10 Dec. 2023 Sunset silhouettes the downtown skyline of Boston, where Summit Partners is based in the Back Bay section. Rod James, WSJ, 4 Jan. 2024 The siding was stripped to the cinder block; a floor lamp silhouetted one empty room. Kamila Hrabchuk, Washington Post, 1 Jan. 2024 Cut out the cat silhouettes on medium-density fiberboard and spray paint them black. Megan Boettcher, Better Homes & Gardens, 3 Oct. 2023 Strong yellow sun spilled through the room’s floor-to-ceiling windows; faint spiderwebs extended across them, silhouetted by the light. Joshua Rothman, The New Yorker, 13 Nov. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'silhouette.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

French, from Étienne de Silhouette †1767 French controller general of finances; perhaps from his ephemeral tenure

First Known Use

Noun

1783, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1876, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of silhouette was in 1783

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Dictionary Entries Near silhouette

Cite this Entry

“Silhouette.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/silhouette. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

silhouette

1 of 2 noun
sil·​hou·​ette ˌsil-ə-ˈwet How to pronounce silhouette (audio)
1
a
: a picture (as a drawing or cutout) of the outline of an object filled in with a solid usually black color
b
: a profile portrait done in silhouette
2
: the outline of an object seen or as if seen against the light

silhouette

2 of 2 verb
silhouetted; silhouetting
: to represent by a silhouette
also : to show against a light background
ducks silhouetted against the evening sky
silhouettist noun

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