oeuvre

noun

oeu·​vre ˈu̇-vrə 

ˈər-,

ˈə-,

ˈœ- 

plural oeuvres ˈu̇-vrə 

ˈə(r)-,

ˈœ- 

: a substantial body of work constituting the lifework of a writer, an artist, or a composer

a catalogue of Rembrandt's oeuvre

scrupulously examines Dickens' oeuvre in order to demonstrate how his convictions helped to determine the shape of his novels

—G. J. Worth

Synonyms

• output
• corpus

Examples of oeuvre in a Sentence

a novel that occupies a relatively minor position in the author's oeuvre

Recent Examples on the Web

But beyond expanding her musical oeuvre, Straus is also setting new challenges for themself in different mediums. —Emma Specter, Vogue, 12 Sep. 2025

The oeuvre features a swirling night sky and bright stars. —Lydia Patrick, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Sep. 2025

Here and nowhere else, Holland treats Kafka’s oeuvre not as abstract fodder for pithy musing, but as texts which were published at a real point in history, that came from the mind of a person and not a divine conduit. —Sam Bodrojan, IndieWire, 5 Sep. 2025

Springsteen’s oeuvre is full of such moments. —Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 30 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French, literally, "work," going back to Old French ovre, going back to Latin opera "activity, effort, attention, work," collective derivative from oper-, opus "work, effort, product of labor" — more at opus

First Known Use

1889, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for oeuvre

• louvre