Definition of composition
1a : the act or process of composing; specifically : arrangement into specific proportion or relation and especially into artistic form the painting's unique compositionb (1) : the arrangement of type for printing hand composition (2) : the production of type or typographic characters (as in photocomposition) arranged for printing
2a : the manner in which something is composedb : general makeup the changing ethnic composition of the city's populationc : the qualitative and quantitative makeup of a chemical compound the chemical composition of a polymer
3 : mutual settlement or agreement The two parties came to a composition.
4 : a product of mixing or combining various elements or ingredients a composition of rubber and cork
5 : an intellectual creation: such asa : a piece of writing; especially : a school exercise in the form of a brief essay wrote a composition on the role of the police in our societyb : a written piece of music especially of considerable size and complexity Her composition for piano and flute was played at the recital.
6 : the quality or state of being compound
7 : the operation of forming a composite function; also : composite function
compositionally
adverbExplore M-W
Examples of composition in a Sentence
the changing composition of the country's population
the composition of a chemical compound
The teacher reminded us to hand in our compositions at the end of class.
Recent Examples of composition from the Web
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Suburbs are changing very rapidly in terms of their racial and ethnic composition –
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That new composition will be one of the works featuring Haochen Zhang, gold medalist of the 2009 Cliburn International Piano Competition.
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The trees resembling Romanesco broccoli are what immediately catch my eye, and the winding road through the frame creates a great composition.
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The club was hosting a week of performances by a diverse slate of musicians tackling the latest book of compositions by John Zorn, the Bagatelles.
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Chemtura Corp. now owns the patent on Firemaster, which is made with a slightly different chemical composition.
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A young inmate took neat notes in the black composition book balanced on his lap, copying down the first principle word for word.
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The new spacecraft is bristling with instruments meant to probe the planet’s magnetosphere, polar regions, composition and interior structure.
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There are signs of Hans Hofmann’s push-pull forms and rectilinear compositions reminiscent of Myron Stout and Burgoyne Diller.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'composition'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of composition
Middle English composicioun, from Anglo-French composicion, from Latin composition-, compositio, from componere —see compose
Other Printing Terms
epigraph, errata, leader, mechanical, notch, tittle, underscore, widow
COMPOSITION Defined for English Language Learners
composition
playDefinition of composition for English Language Learners
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: the way in which something is put together or arranged : the combination of parts or elements that make up something
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: a piece of writing; especially : a brief essay written as a school assignment
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: a written piece of music and especially one that is very long or complex
COMPOSITION Defined for Kids
composition
playDefinition of composition for Students
1 : a short piece of writing done as a school exercise
2 : the act of writing words or music
3 : the manner in which the parts of a thing are put together : makeup, constitution The president discussed the population's changing composition. Each rock has a slightly different composition.
4 : a literary, musical, or artistic production
Law Dictionary
composition
Legal Definition of composition
: an agreement between an insolvent debtor and several creditors whereby partial payment of the debts discharges in full the original obligations — compare accord 3, compromise
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See words that rhyme with composition Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for composition Spanish Central: Translation of composition Nglish: Translation of composition for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of composition for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about composition
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