/staɪl/
OriginThe noun is derived from Middle English stile, stel, stele, stiel, stiele, stil, still, stille, styele, style, styill, styll, styyl (“writing tool, stylus; piece of written work; characteristic mode of expression, particularly one regarded as high quality; demeanour, manner, way of life; person's designation or title; stem of a plant; period of time”) (compare semantic development to по́черк (póčerk, “handwriting, style”)), from Old French style, estile, stil, stile (modern French style), or from Medieval Latin stylus, both from Latin stilus (“pointed instrument, pale, spike, stake; writing tool, stylus; act of setting down in writing, composition; characteristic mode of expression, style; stem of a plant”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)teyg- (“to be sharp; to pierce, prick, puncture, stab; to goad”). Doublet of stylus.
The English word is cognate with Catalan estil (“engraving tool, stylus; gnomon; manner of doing something, style; fashionable skill, grace”), German Stiel (“handle; stalk”), Italian stilo (“needle, stylus; fountain pen; beam; gnomon; part of pistil, style”), Occitan estil, Portuguese estilo (“writing tool, stylus; manner of doing something, style”), Spanish estilo (“writing tool, stylus; manner of doing something, style; fashionable skill, grace; part of pistil, style”).
The verb is derived from the noun.
- countable, historical, uncountableA sharp stick used for writing on clay tablets or other surfaces; a stylus; (by extension, obsolete) an instrument used to write with ink; a pen.
“Thus while his Thoughts the lingring Day beguile, / To gentle Arcite let us turn our Style; [...]”
- countable, uncountableA tool with a sharp point used in engraving; a burin, a graver, a stylet, a stylus.
“From Job xix. 24. it appears to have been usual in his day, to write or engrave upon Plates of Lead, which might easily be done with a Pen, or Graver, or Style of Iron, or other hard metal.”
- countable, uncountableThe gnomon or pin of a sundial, the shadow of which indicates the hour.
“Laſt of all fit a Triangular Iron, whoſe angular point being laid to the Center of the Dyal Plane, one ſide muſt agree with the Subſtilar Line, and its other ſide with the Stilar Line; ſo is the Stile”
- countable, uncountableThe stalk that connects the stigma(s) to the ovary in a pistil of a flower.
“The calyx of Theophraſta is a ſmall, permanent perianthium, divided into five obtuſe ſegments, making obtuſe angles alſo with one another: [...] the ſtyle is ſubulated, and ſhorter than the corolla: t”
- countable, uncountableA kind of surgical instrument with a blunt point, used for exploration.
- countable, uncountableA small, thin, pointed body part.
- countable, uncountableA long, slender, bristle-like process near the anal region.
“the anal styles of insects”
- broadly, countable, uncountableA particular manner of expression in writing or speech, especially one regarded as good.
“May I not vvrite in such a ſtile as this? / In ſuch a method too, and yet not miſs / Mine end, thy good? vvhy may it not be done?”
“Read Lord Bolingbroke's [book] with great attention, as well as to the ſtyle as to the matter. I wiſh you could form yourſelf ſuch a ſtyle in every language. Style is the dreſs of thoughts, and a well”
“The public will naturally expect, that in chuſing a Patron for the Life of Cicero, I should addreſs myſelf to ſome perſon of illuſtrious rank, diſtinguished by his parts and eloquence, and bearing a p”
- broadly, countable, uncountableA legal or traditional term or formula of words used to address or refer to a person, especially a monarch or a person holding a post or having a title.
“Near-synonyms: term of address, form of address, title”
“Monarchs are often addressed with the style of Majesty.”
“The villagers styled him as my Liege, and this style, once established, was seldom forgone.”
- broadly, countable, uncountableA style name.
- countable, uncountableA particular manner of creating, doing, or presenting something, especially a work of architecture or art.
“[T]here are two distinct styles in history painting; the grand, and the splendid or ornamental. The great style stands alone, and does not require, perhaps does not so well admit, any addition from in”
“To our English tastes it is unnecessary to advocate the style of [Diego] Velazquez. [...] Sir Joshua [Reynolds], [George] Romney, and [Henry] Raeburn, whether from imitation or instinct, seem powerful”
“This style was sometimes called Palladian from the fact of [Andrea] Palladio having fully developed and absorbed into his own system the styles of his great predecessors of the [Florentine] school, [.”
- countable, uncountableA particular manner of acting or behaving; (specifically) one regarded as fashionable or skilful; flair, grace.
“As a dancer, he has a lot of style.”
“Backstabbing people is not my style.”
“Running would feel better than hiding and waiting. It was not her style to hole up in the shadows.”
- countable, uncountableA particular way in which one grooms, adorns, dresses, or carries oneself; (specifically) a way thought to be attractive or fashionable.
- countable, uncountableA visual or other modification to text or other elements of a document, such as boldface or italics.
“applying styles to text in a wordprocessor Cascading Style Sheets”
“In today's assignment, you need to: [...] Right justify your heading in 12 point Helvetica font and plain text style.”
“The concept of creating styles has been around since long before the Web. Desktop publishing programs, such as Adobe InDesign, and even word processing programs, such as Microsoft Word, have long used”
- countable, uncountableA set of rules regarding the presentation of text (spelling, typography, the citation of references, etc.) and illustrations that is applied by a publisher to the works it produces.
“the house style of the journal”
“If you have to settle for an expert typist who has not completed recent dissertations for your school, buy two copies of the style manual, one for you and one for the typist.”
“There are many excellent style manuals, and every good writer should have one or more of these at hand, along with the appropriate formatting instructions for the particular standard beng followed. Th”
- transitiveTo design, fashion, make, or arrange in a certain way or form (style).
- formal, transitiveTo call or give a name or title to.
“The pope is styled His or Your Holiness.”
“[…] Donenald O-Neale, rovvſed out of his lurking holes, in his miſsiue letters vnto the Pope, ſtileth himſelfe King of Vlſter, and in right of inheritance, the vndoubted Heire of all Ireland.”
“One morning, about a fortnight after I had obtained my liberty, Reldresal, principal secretary (as they style him) for private affairs, came to my house attended only by one servant.”
- informal, transitiveTo create for, or give to, someone a style, fashion, or image, particularly one which is regarded as attractive, tasteful, or trendy.
- US, informal, intransitiveTo act in a way which seeks to show that one possesses style.
Formsstyles(plural) · stile(alternative) · stylee(alternative) · stile(alternative, obsolete) · styles(present, singular, third-person) · styling(participle, present) · styled(participle, past) · styled(past)