frontispiece

noun

fron·​tis·​piece ˈfrən-tə-ˌspēs 

1

a

: the principal front of a building

b

: a decorated pediment over a portico or window

2

: an illustration preceding and usually facing the title page of a book or magazine

Examples of frontispiece in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Gompers’s line drawings fused Heinz Edelmann with the woodblock frontispiece of the Chinese translation of the Diamond Sutra. — Literary Hub, 29 June 2026

Only an engraving of Equiano’s likeness printed in the frontispiece of The Interesting Narrative remains. — Eli Wizevich, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 May 2025

The frontispiece illustration was part of a four-image set that Wyeth, the father of the painter Andrew Wyeth, contributed for a 1939 edition of the book. — Matt Stevens, New York Times, 28 Nov. 2023

Gustave Doré's depiction of Don Quixote amid his fantasies of chivalric romance, the frontispiece to the 1863 Paris Hachette edition. — Ilan Stavans, BostonGlobe.com, 23 Aug. 2023

After all, even Martin Droeshout’s frontispiece portrait for the First Folio shows a face that looks, to some eyes, like a mask. — Michael Dirda, Washington Post, 21 Apr. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Middle French frontispice, from Late Latin frontispicium facade, from Latin front-, frons + -i- + specere to look at — more at spy

First Known Use

1598, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Rhymes for frontispiece

• altarpiece
• centerpiece
• mantelpiece
• masterpiece
• pilates
• specialise
• stabilise
• syntheses
• apiece
• aris
• assise
• caprice

Kids Definition

frontispiece

noun

fron·​tis·​piece ˈfrənt-ə-ˌspēs 

: an illustration facing the title page of a book