fil·i·gree | \ ˈfi-lə-ˌgrē 
\
\Definition of filigree
(Entry 1 of 2)
1 : ornamental work especially of fine wire of gold, silver, or copper applied chiefly to gold and silver surfaces
a headband decorated with silver filigree
2a : ornamental openwork of delicate or intricate design
b : a pattern or design resembling such openwork
a filigree of frost
c : ornamentation, embellishment writings … heavy with late Victorian filigree— Jack Beatty
filigree
verbfiligreed; filigreeing
Definition of filigree (Entry 2 of 2)
: to adorn with or as if with filigree
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Examples of filigree in a Sentence
Noun
a surface decorated with filigree and pearls
Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Don’t look for toasty, brioche notes; this is a wine of filigree and finesse.
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Washington Post, "This savory, silky $14 pinot noir is worth stocking up on," 4 Dec. 2020 Actively oppositional stances wound their way across and into sophisti-pop canon like sharp filigree.
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Washington Post, "Almost anarchy: The Style Council and the smooth sounds of sophisti-pop," 20 Nov. 2020 The oboe plays a jaunty melody while the strings toss off fast filigree.
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Tim Diovanni, Dallas News, "From Buenos Aires to Florence: Dallas Chamber Music Society concert covered a lot of ground," 17 Nov. 2020 In that setting, the tenderness Ax applied to the slow movement was positively gripping, his filigree on certain passages remarkably meaningful.
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Zachary Lewis, cleveland, "Cleveland Orchestra shines in Haydn, Bartok on third ‘In Focus’ series episode: Review," 13 Nov. 2020 But Eddie’s meaty arpeggios in the song’s prechorus provide a crucial counterweight to all the Space Age filigree.
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chicagotribune.com, "Remembering Eddie Van Halen: His 20 greatest performances," 7 Oct. 2020 Most striking: Wrought iron with ornamental filigree is seen in the stucco garden wall, and inside, wrought-iron railing winds up the main staircase.
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oregonlive, "1928 Mediterranean mansion with turret in Portland’s West Hills is a bit of a mystery," 7 Oct. 2020 Its gold curves and filigree rise above her shoulders, a stark symbol of luxury against a flat white wall.
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Ariana Romero, refinery29.com, "Amara La Negra Shouldn’t Have To Educate You. But Class Is In Session.," 22 Sep. 2020 This is the sort of flash and filigree that is shunned by Volkswagen and most other small-car builders.
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Patrick Bedard, Car and Driver, "Tested: 1977 Chevrolet Chevette Puts Price Before Performance," 17 Aug. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Two years and much ado later, Raghda serves lattes filigreed with milk art at a strip-mall coffee shop and Rafaa hosts community gatherings at an event space across the way.
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Vivian Yee, New York Times, "Saudi Law Granted Women New Freedoms. Their Families Don’t Always Agree.," 14 Mar. 2020 Another helpful move was using what Bugatti calls filigree side view mirrors, which let air pass through them.
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Alex Davies, WIRED, "Want to Burn $9 Million to Go 236 MPH? Try the New Bugatti," 19 Aug. 2019 In contrast to the historic skyscraper’s filigreed crown of flying buttresses and pinnacles, the top of the new one would consist of curving glass walls extending beyond the building’s occupied floors.
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Blair Kamin And Ryan Ori, chicagotribune.com, "Developers plan city's second-tallest skyscraper next to new Tribune Tower condos," 16 Apr. 2018 The Mulsanne is a large luxury superliner of Bentley refinement and filigree that work flawlessly as luxurious separators from the competition, mainly the Rolls-Royce Phantom and Mercedes-Maybach S600.
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Mark Maynard, sandiegouniontribune.com, "2017 Bentley Mulsanne: A battle hymn of tradition and stoic provenance," 11 Aug. 2017 St. Petersburg is a museum city, its gold-filigreed heart pulsing with tsarist palaces, Baroque churches, and Art Nouveau mansions.
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Sophie Pinkham, New Republic, "How a Russian Street Art Museum Defies Kremlin Censors," 3 July 2017
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'filigree.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for filigree
filigree
nounEnglish Language Learners Definition of filigree
: decoration that consists of delicate and complicated designs made of fine gold or silver wire
See the full definition for filigree in the English Language Learners Dictionary
filigree
nounfil·i·gree | \ ˈfi-lə-ˌgrē \
\Kids Definition of filigree
: decoration made of fine wire
a jewelry box with gold filigree
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Time Traveler for filigree
The first known use of filigree was in 1693
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