1
a
: a rough drawing representing the chief features of an object or scene and often made as a preliminary study
b
: a tentative draft (as for a literary work)
2
: a brief description (as of a person) or outline
3
a
: a short literary composition somewhat resembling the short story and the essay but intentionally slight in treatment, discursive in style, and familiar in tone
b
: a short instrumental composition usually for piano
c
: a slight theatrical piece having a single scene
especially
: a comic variety act
sketched; sketching; sketches
: to make a sketch, rough draft, or outline of
: to draw or paint a sketch
sketcher
noun
Examples of sketch in a Sentence
Noun
He made a sketch of his house.
He wrote up a sketch of the plot.
There is a biographical sketch of the author on the book's back cover.
Verb
He sketched the trees outside his window.
He likes to sit outside and sketch.
She sketched the plan for us.
Recent Examples on the Web
Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 19 Apr. 2026
More recently, Higher Ground has been setting up projects outside of Netflix, including the HBO sketch comedy series Life Larry, and the Pursuit of Unhappiness, from creator Larry David and Jeff Schaffer, which premieres in June.
—Kimberly Nordyke, HollywoodReporter, 19 Apr. 2026
Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 13 Apr. 2026
All of this is to amp up our sympathy for these men and our certainty that Carol killed Floyd, until the season finale finally sketches her out, albeit thinly.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 13 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for sketch
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Noun
The company’s outside slate includes HBO’s upcoming half-hour sketch comedy series, Life, Larry and The Pursuit of Unhappiness, with Larry David and Jeff Schaffer, which is slated to premiere this summer to coincide with the nation’s 250th anniversary.
—Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 19 Apr. 2026
More recently, Higher Ground has been setting up projects outside of Netflix, including the HBO sketch comedy series Life Larry, and the Pursuit of Unhappiness, from creator Larry David and Jeff Schaffer, which premieres in June.
—Kimberly Nordyke, HollywoodReporter, 19 Apr. 2026
Verb
The Paul of these pages, sketched by sixteen scholars, is close to his contemporary Philo of Alexandria.
—Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 13 Apr. 2026
All of this is to amp up our sympathy for these men and our certainty that Carol killed Floyd, until the season finale finally sketches her out, albeit thinly.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 13 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for sketch
Cite this Entry
“Sketch.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sketch. Accessed 20 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
sketch
1 of 2 noun1
a
: a rough drawing representing the chief features of an object or scene
b
: a rough draft (as of a story)
2
: a brief description or outline
3
: a short comedy piece
sketch
2 of 2 verb1
: to make a sketch, rough draft, or outline of
2
: to draw or paint a sketch
sketcher
noun
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