patterning

pat·tern·ing | \ ˈpa-tər-niŋ

Definition of patterning

1 : decoration, composition, or configuration according to a pattern

2 : physical therapy especially for neurological impairment based on a theory holding that repeated manipulation of body parts to simulate normal motor developmental activity (such as crawling or walking) promotes neurological development or repair

Examples of patterning in a Sentence

The wallpaper is decorated with floral patterning.

Recent Examples on the Web That is how the 12 gauge could hit harder, but this requires effective patterning. — Ron Spomer, Outdoor Life, "Shotgun Showdown: 12 Gauge vs. 20 Gauge vs. 28 Gauge," 11 Dec. 2019 In the handful of works by Vuillard, both the abstract patterning and the absence of modelling cause the borders between the picture’s separate elements to evanesce. — Washington Post, "These painters found calm in an age of distraction — more than a century ago," 23 Dec. 2019 That building no longer exists, but its deconstruction is suggested by a series in which a once-solid architectural form has been reduced to a study in geometric patterning. — Mike Giuliano, baltimoresun.com, "Take a photographic journey at Kish Gallery exhibit in Columbia," 29 Nov. 2019 His cultural references were often to non-Western sources, ancient and modern: Islamic design, African patterning, South Asian mandalas. — New York Times, "Joe Overstreet, Painter and Activist, Is Dead at 85," 10 June 2019 The New York unveiling functioned a bit like the visual bling, the play of surface color and luxurious patterning in Wiley’s painted works. — Philip Kennicott, Washington Post, "With a brass band blaring, artist Kehinde Wiley goes off to war with Confederate statues," 27 Sep. 2019 To da Vinci, this patterning looked suspiciously alive. — Quanta Magazine, "A Universal Law for the ‘Blood of the Earth’," 28 Nov. 2018 Furthermore, diffusion and the random walk are responsible for the complex patterning found in the bodies of animals and plants. — Quanta Magazine, "Solution: ‘A Drunkard’s Walk in Manhattan’," 7 Sep. 2016 In 2015, Levin, his postdoc Vaibhav Pai, and other collaborators showed experimentally that bioelectric signals from the body shape the development and patterning of the brain in its earliest stages. — Quanta Magazine, "Brainless Embryos Suggest Bioelectricity Guides Growth," 13 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'patterning.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

17 Jan 2020

Cite this Entry

“Patterning.” The Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster Inc., https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/patterning. Accessed 21 January 2020.

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More Definitions for patterning

patterning

noun

English Language Learners Definition of patterning

: the designs or patterns that appear on something

See the full definition for patterning in the English Language Learners Dictionary

patterning

noun

pat·tern·ing

Medical Definition of patterning

: physical therapy especially for neurological impairment based on a theory holding that repeated manipulation of body parts to simulate normal motor developmental activity (as crawling or walking) promotes neurological development or repair