Main Entry: ¹fig·ure

Pronunciation: \ˈfi-gyər, British & often US ˈfi-gər\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin figura, from fingere

Date: 13th century

1 a : a number symbol : numeral, digit b plural : arithmetical calculations <good at figures> c : a written or printed character d : value especially as expressed in numbers : sum, price <sold at a low figure> e plural : digits representing an amount (as of money earned or points scored) <made six figures last year> <a score in double figures>
2 a : a geometric form (as a line, triangle, or sphere) especially when considered as a set of geometric elements (as points) in space of a given number of dimensions <a square is a plane figure> b : bodily shape or form especially of a person <a slender figure> c : an object noticeable only as a shape or form <figures moving in the dusk>
3 a : the graphic representation of a form especially of a person or geometric entity b : a diagram or pictorial illustration of textual matter
4 : a person, thing, or action representative of another
5 a : figure of speech b : an intentional deviation from the ordinary form or syntactical relation of words
6 : the form of a syllogism with respect to the relative position of the middle term
7 : an often repetitive pattern or design in a manufactured article (as cloth) or natural product (as wood) <a polka-dot figure>
8 : appearance made : impression produced <the couple cut quite a figure>
9 a : a series of movements in a dance b : an outline representation of a form traced by a series of evolutions (as with skates on an ice surface or by an airplane in the air)
10 : a prominent personality : personage <great figures of history>
11 : a short coherent group of notes or chords that may constitute part of a phrase, theme, or composition