composition
noun
Simple meaning
A work of music, literature or art.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
kahmpuhzishuhnSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
kɑmpəˈzɪʃən
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
An essay (especially one written as an assignment)
“He got an A on his composition.”
A work of music, literature or art.
A mixture or compound; the result of composing.
The spatial property resulting from the arrangement of parts in relation to each other and to the whole
“Harmonious composition is essential in a serious work of art.”
A mixture of ingredients
The proportion of different parts to make a whole.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B1 · Intermediate
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: An essay (especially one written as an assignment)
Used this way, composition is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
“He got an A on his composition.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
How It’s Used
The word’s distinct uses, one example each.
Spatial / proportionnoun
“Harmonious composition is essential in a serious work of art.”
Essaynoun
“He got an A on his composition.”
More ways to use composition
- “He got an A on his composition.”noun
- “The composition is written in four movements.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
A stiff moderately thick paper.
A play for performance on the stage or television or in a movie etc.
Imaginative or creative writing.
A musical work that has been created.
The way in which someone or something is composed.
A material that hardens when heated and cannot be remolded.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: essay (especially one written as an assignment)
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.