plural tableaux
ˈta-ˌblōz 
ta-ˈblōz
also tableaus
1
: a graphic description or representation : picture
winsome tableaux of old-fashioned literary days—
J. D. Hart
J. D. Hart2
: a striking or artistic grouping : arrangement, scene
3
[short for tableau vivant (from French, literally, living picture)]
: a depiction of a scene usually presented on a stage by silent and motionless costumed participants
Examples of tableau in a Sentence
The houses are grouped together in a charming tableau.
Recent Examples on the Web
Some students admitted that they were unsettled, and even moved, by the simple tableau of Heston weeping in front of the last symbol of an extinct civilization.
—Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, 10 July 2025
In a different image, Salgado presents a tense standoff between a miner and a police officer; here, their faces are visible, as are those of the men surrounding them, a powerful tableau of oppression and resistance.
—Nicholas Creel, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 July 2025
Before it was memorialized in bronze, that airborne tableau outside TD Garden was frozen in time by Boston Record-American photographer Ray Lussier.
—Mike Dojc, Forbes.com, 7 July 2025
The novel opens with a tableau: Siblings Alma and Anne tend to their longtime friend, who’s dying.
—Leigh Haber, Los Angeles Times, 20 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for tableau
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Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, 10 July 2025
In a different image, Salgado presents a tense standoff between a miner and a police officer; here, their faces are visible, as are those of the men surrounding them, a powerful tableau of oppression and resistance.
—Nicholas Creel, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 July 2025
Before it was memorialized in bronze, that airborne tableau outside TD Garden was frozen in time by Boston Record-American photographer Ray Lussier.
—Mike Dojc, Forbes.com, 7 July 2025
The novel opens with a tableau: Siblings Alma and Anne tend to their longtime friend, who’s dying.
—Leigh Haber, Los Angeles Times, 20 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for tableau
Cite this Entry
“Tableau.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tableau. Accessed 14 Jul. 2025.
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