sketch

noun

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\ ˈskech

Definition of sketch

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : 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

3a : 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

sketch

verb

sketched; sketching; sketches

Definition of sketch (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

: to make a sketch, rough draft, or outline of

intransitive verb

: to draw or paint a sketch

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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: Noun Before the sculpture’s creation, Harvey drew three rough sketches of the sequence of events just before and after the capture of the snitch for Karpewicz’s review. — Kathi Santora, baltimoresun.com, "This Cecil County artist will turn your favorite book into a sculpture made from its pages," 11 Nov. 2019 After studies showed kids wanted more cohesive stories, Sesame Street began to shed its Saturday Night Live–like sketch structure, moving toward longer segments. — Lily Rothman, Time, "'We're All Growing Up Together': As Sesame Street Turns 50, Big Bird Is Still Making Friends Everywhere He Goes," 7 Nov. 2019 In place of traditional commercial breaks, the show now profits from routinely integrating actual products in sketches and satirical productions. — Anne Quito, Quartzy, "SNL’s Farrow & Ball sketch toes the line between parody and product placement," 6 Nov. 2019 The new report, by Adrian Smith, director of the Alan Turing Institute in London, and Graeme Reid, a science policy expert at University College London, sketches out a strategy. — Erik Stokstad, Science | AAAS, "Report sketches vision for U.K. research after Brexit," 5 Nov. 2019 In that notorious heist, paintings worth $500 million were stolen, including works by Vermeer and Manet, three Rembrandt paintings, and five sketches by Degas — the most expensive loot haul of any crime in American history. — Jim Geraghty, National Review, "The Last Trusted Prosecutor in Washington," 4 Nov. 2019 The show’s political sketches are always patchy, as the writing process appears to involve mashing up recent headlines and sprinkling in extra zaniness. — Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, "SNL Runs an Ad for Elizabeth Warren," 3 Nov. 2019 Sells even blocked a request by NBC News to have a sketch artist sit in the courtroom to draw pictures of proceedings. — Elise Schmelzer, The Denver Post, "Kelsey Berreth murder case: Small town, 115-year-old courthouse brace for high-profile trial of Patrick Frazee," 1 Nov. 2019 Five members of a theatrical troupe in Burma were sentenced Wednesday to a year in prison for sketches that satirized the country’s military. — Fox News, "Burmese actors get 1-year jail term for satirizing military," 1 Nov. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Although the district had spent two years sketching out capital improvements in consultation with each school, their ambitions grew before the projects went out for bids. — Josh Verges, Twin Cities, "St. Paul to overhaul school construction plans after $179M increase on 18 projects," 22 Oct. 2019 Clean out your pumpkin (from the bottom), then sketch the design on the skin. — Joan Lang, Woman's Day, "Eye Spy Pumpkin," 5 Sep. 2019 Little notoriously killed women by strangling them and was known for sketching portraits of his victims. — Fox News, "Notorious serial killer pleads guilty to 4 Ohio murders," 24 Aug. 2019 Around this time last year, Giertz partnered with a friend, engineer Marcos Ramirez, to start sketching out what a Model 3-turned-pickup-truck would look like. — Lauren Goode, WIRED, "YouTube's 'Shitty Robot' Queen Made Her Own Tesla Pickup Truck," 18 June 2019 The lineaments of a more equitable, sustainable, and cooperative world sketched out by advocates of a Green New Deal have given way, in stunningly short order, to a race to a new global bottom, equal parts Thomas Hobbes and Mad Max. — Emily Atkin, The New Republic, "The Blood-Dimmed Tide," 16 Sep. 2019 Nuri and Afra are not broadly sketched as victims, but rather suffer in different and complex ways from PTSD–a condition still rarely explored in literature beyond the accounts of veteran fighters or war correspondents. — Naina Bajekal, Time, "A New Novel Sees Beyond the Abstraction of Today's Refugee Stories," 22 Aug. 2019 Those who will be starting the fire with drip torches, each containing a mix of diesel and gasoline, huddle around the team leader who is sketching the contours of the slope in front of them in the dirt. — Scott Wilson, Washington Post, "Wet California winter is a boon for skiers and water supply. But it brings a threat: wildfires.," 17 June 2019 Those who will be starting the fire with drip torches, each containing a mix of diesel and gasoline, huddle around the team leader who is sketching the contours of the slope in front of them in the dirt. — The Washington Post, The Mercury News, "Wet California winter is a boon for skiers and water supply. But it brings a threat: wildfires.," 17 June 2019

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

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Dictionary Entries near sketch

Statistics for sketch

Last Updated

14 Nov 2019

Time Traveler for sketch

The first known use of sketch was in 1668

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More Definitions for sketch

sketch

noun

English Language Learners Definition of sketch

(Entry 1 of 2)

: a quick, rough drawing that shows the main features of an object or scene

: a short description of something

: a short, funny performance

sketch

verb

English Language Learners Definition of sketch (Entry 2 of 2)

: to make a quick, rough drawing of (something)

: to describe (something) briefly

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

sketch

noun

\ ˈskech

Kids Definition of sketch

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : a rough outline or drawing showing the main features of something

2 : a short written work (as a story or essay)

3 : a short comic performance

sketch

verb

sketched; sketching

Kids Definition of sketch (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : to make a drawing, rough draft, or outline of

2 : to describe or outline (something) briefly Should the scheme he had now sketched prove feasible, Silver … would not hesitate to adopt it.— Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island

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