Main Entry: ¹style

Pronunciation: \ˈstī(-ə)l\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English stile, style, from Latin stilus spike, stem, stylus, style of writing; perhaps akin to Latin instigare to goad — more at stick

Date: 14th century

1 : designation, title
2 a : a distinctive manner of expression (as in writing or speech) <writes with more attention to style than to content> <the flowery style of 18th century prose> b : a distinctive manner or custom of behaving or conducting oneself <the formal style of the court> <his style is abrasive>; also : a particular mode of living <in high style> c : a particular manner or technique by which something is done, created, or performed <a unique style of horseback riding> <the classical style of dance>
3 a : stylus b : gnomon 1b c : the filiform usually elongated part of the pistil bearing a stigma at its apex — see flower illustration d : a slender elongated process (as a bristle) on an animal
4 : a distinctive quality, form, or type of something <a new dress style> <the Greek style of architecture>
5 a : the state of being popular : fashion <clothes that are always in style> b : fashionable elegance c : beauty, grace, or ease of manner or technique <an awkward moment she handled with style>
6 : a convention with respect to spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and typographic arrangement and display followed in writing or printing

synonyms see fashion

— style·less \ˈstī(-ə)l-ləs\ adjective

— style·less·ness noun