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
Synonyms
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
Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 14 Oct. 2024
This is a great opportunity for artists and those who want to enjoy a peaceful sketch to come out and hone their figure and horse drawing skills, said Casey Seamans, gallery manager at RAM.
—Dustin Staggs, arkansasonline.com, 13 Oct. 2024
Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 4 Oct. 2024
On a grassy hillside nestled into a live oak woodland ecosystem in the San Francisco Bay Area, a group of elementary students armed with clipboards huddle around a cluster of native vegetation, sketching its craggy form and jotting down observations.
—Maya Chawla, Architectural Digest, 25 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for sketch 
Noun
In classic form, Liam Gallagher has responded to a Saturday Night Live sketch that aired over the weekend mocking the two Oasis members for not getting along.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 14 Oct. 2024
This is a great opportunity for artists and those who want to enjoy a peaceful sketch to come out and hone their figure and horse drawing skills, said Casey Seamans, gallery manager at RAM.
—Dustin Staggs, arkansasonline.com, 13 Oct. 2024
Verb
Jonathan is lovingly remembered, though his portrait is only sketched.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 4 Oct. 2024
On a grassy hillside nestled into a live oak woodland ecosystem in the San Francisco Bay Area, a group of elementary students armed with clipboards huddle around a cluster of native vegetation, sketching its craggy form and jotting down observations.
—Maya Chawla, Architectural Digest, 25 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for sketch
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sketch.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Articles Related to sketch
Dictionary Entries Near sketch
Cite this Entry
“Sketch.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sketch. Accessed 24 Oct. 2024.
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
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share