composite

1 of 3

adjective

com·​pos·​ite käm-ˈpä-zət How to pronounce composite (audio)
kəm-ˈpä-,
especially British
ˈkäm-pə-zit How to pronounce composite (audio)
1
: made up of distinct parts or elements
a composite photograph
composite materials
: such as
a
capitalized : relating to or being a modification of the Corinthian order combining angular Ionic volutes with the acanthus-circled bell of the Corinthian
b
: of or relating to a very large family (Compositae synonym Asteraceae) of dicotyledonous herbs, shrubs, and trees often considered to be the most highly evolved plants and characterized by florets arranged in dense heads that resemble single flowers
c
: factorable into two or more prime factors other than 1 and itself
8 is a positive composite integer.
2
: combining the typical or essential characteristics of individuals making up a group
… the composite man called the Poet …Richard Poirier
… the knight was a composite portrait of men whom Chaucer personally knew.John Livingston Lowes
3
of a statistical hypothesis : specifying a range of values for one or more statistical parameters compare simple sense 10
4
of a video signal : having two signal components (such as chrominance and luminance) combined in a single channel
For years, commercial television equipment has relied upon composite video cabling, which carries both brightness (luminance) and color (chroma) in a single cable. Problem is, before your television can produce a picture from this signal, it must be heavily filtered, resulting in serious degradation of image quality.Home Theater Buyer's Guide
compare component entry 2 sense 2
compositely adverb

composite

2 of 3

noun

1
: something composite : compound
a composite of two images
2
: a composite (see composite entry 1 sense 1b) plant
daisies, dandelions, and other composites
3
4
: a solid material which is composed of two or more substances having different physical characteristics and in which each substance retains its identity while contributing desirable properties to the whole
especially : a structural material made of plastic within which a fibrous material (such as silicon carbide) is embedded
5
: an artist's sketch or digitally generated image of a criminal suspect usually created from witnesses' descriptions and used to help police identify and apprehend the suspect
a police composite
Police have released a composite of the suspect based on a description from the victim of the April 4 robbery.Jim Jaworski

composite

3 of 3

verb

composited; compositing

transitive verb

: to make composite or into something composite
composited four soil samples
composite the images

Examples of composite in a Sentence

Adjective the movie's special effects included the use of many composite photographs Noun a composite of diverse communities He spotted a man who resembled the police composite. Verb wood chips can be composited or sold as mulch
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
For more than five decades, a polymer core has typically been sandwiched between ultra-thin panels made from aluminum composite material (ACM) on the facade of modern high-rises. Alex Christian, WIRED, 1 Mar. 2024 The Nasdaq composite index is up nearly 40% the past year. Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 28 Feb. 2024 Tokyo led the ranking of the best cities for single people with a composite score of 169. Kaitlyn McInnis, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2024 All four competitors got two dunks in the first round, and the two players with the highest composite score for their two dunks (maximum score of 100 and a minimum score of 80) advanced to the head-to-head final round. Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 18 Feb. 2024 The case garnered a lot of media attention and a composite sketch of one of the suspects was circulated, but no leads ever panned out. Christine Pelisek, Peoplemag, 31 Jan. 2024 Owens is ranked as the 355th overall player and 19th-best tight end in the 2025 class, according to 247 Sports' composite rankings. Jared Ramsey, Detroit Free Press, 4 Jan. 2024 At least four months later, the 68-ton tanks—with their 120-millimeter smoothbore guns, high-end day-night optics, composite armor and powerful but thirsty gas-turbine engines—still are somewhere behind the front line. David Axe, Forbes, 17 Feb. 2024 The four types of volcanoes are composite, cinder cone, plug dome and shield. Eve Chen, USA TODAY, 27 Jan. 2024
Noun
Unlike most animals that grow as a single entity, this siphonophore is a composite of thousands of cloned bodies, each specialized for different tasks. Anna Nordseth, Discover Magazine, 1 Mar. 2024 The final score is a composite, considering both MCQ and essay performances. Bryce Welker, Miami Herald, 24 Feb. 2024 At the end of 2022, the S&P 500 was down 19.6% from the start of the calendar year, while the NASDAQ composite was down 33.5%. Emma Whitford, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024 Each segment, unique in its timeline placement, composites and preserves all the content employed to forge it. Kyle Russell, USA TODAY, 12 Jan. 2024 Designs are sketched, then prototyped in salpa, a cardboard-like composite that allows the basic structure to be tested. Paul Croughton, Robb Report, 17 Feb. 2024 Gary Carr’s Clyde X hangs back and judges Malcolm X and then doesn’t really do anything because even though Clyde X was a real figure, he’s been morphed into a composite. Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 31 Jan. 2024 The Nasdaq composite jumped 255.32, or 1.7%, to 15,310.97. Stan Choe The Associated Press, arkansasonline.com, 20 Jan. 2024 Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.8% higher. Stan Choe, Fortune, 18 Jan. 2024
Verb
Prior to compositing to two metre lengths, high tin, silver, and lead values were capped for each zone individually. Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Feb. 2024 In compositing their stories, Durkin sets up the emotional catharsis of his film, an explosive confrontation moments after Kerry’s death in which Kevin physically takes out his anger and grief on his father. Jen Yamato, Los Angeles Times, 20 Dec. 2023 As part of their analysis, the researchers composited the health outcomes into 10 organ systems: cardiovascular, coagulation and hematological, fatigue, gastrointestinal, kidney, mental health, metabolic, musculoskeletal, neurological, and pulmonary. Carolyn Barber, Fortune, 14 Dec. 2023 The live-action scenes were then composited together using Photoshop, and set extensions were completed with Maya software. Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 Sep. 2023 That's where Cameron's love of high-tech effects came into play: The actors performed the engine scenes in front of a green screen, and their images were composited into footage of the SS Jeremiah O'Brien blown up to the appropriate size. Katie Rife, EW.com, 27 Apr. 2023 The movie’s water toolset, facial systems and depth compositing all received nods. Karen Idelson, Variety, 15 Feb. 2023 It’s not an exaggeration to say that today a creator can create a graphic or animation with their phone and composite it into a video with better resolution than what the creators of the 1990s TV show Babylon 5 could do. Nathaniel Hunter, Forbes, 25 Apr. 2022 Of the 21 Tide players ranked within the top 50 by 247 Sports’ industry composite the past three classes (2020-22), six have been outside linebackers -- two more than any other position group. Mike Rodak | Mrodak@al.com, al, 29 Mar. 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'composite.' 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

Adjective and Noun

Latin compositus, past participle of componere — see compose

First Known Use

Adjective

1563, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1656, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1923, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of composite was in 1563

Dictionary Entries Near composite

Cite this Entry

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

Kids Definition

composite

1 of 2 adjective
com·​pos·​ite käm-ˈpäz-ət How to pronounce composite (audio) kəm- How to pronounce composite (audio)
1
: made up of various parts or elements
a composite photograph
2
: of or relating to a very large family of dicotyledonous plants (as a daisy or aster) that are characterized by flowers arranged in dense heads that resemble single flowers
3
: able to be factored into two or more prime factors other than 1 and itself
12 is a composite number since 2 × 2 × 3 = 12

composite

2 of 2 noun
1
: something that is made up of different parts : compound
2
: a composite plant

More from Merriam-Webster on composite

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!