pattern
Americannoun
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a decorative design, as for wallpaper, china, or textile fabrics, etc.
- Synonyms:
- figure
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decoration or ornament having such a design.
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a natural or chance marking, configuration, or design.
patterns of frost on the window.
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a distinctive style, model, or form.
a new pattern of army helmet.
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a combination of qualities, acts, tendencies, etc., forming a consistent or characteristic arrangement.
the behavior patterns of teenagers.
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an original or model considered for or deserving of imitation.
Our constitution has been a pattern for those of many new republics.
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anything fashioned or designed to serve as a model or guide for something to be made.
a paper pattern for a dress.
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a sufficient quantity of material for making a garment.
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the path of flight established for an aircraft approaching an airport at which it is to land.
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a diagram of lines transmitted occasionally by a television station to aid in adjusting receiving sets; test pattern.
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Metallurgy. a model or form, usually of wood or metal, used for giving the shape of the interior of a mold.
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Numismatics. a coin, either the redesign of an existing piece or the model for a new one, submitted for authorization as a regular issue.
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an example, instance, sample, or specimen.
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Gunnery, Aerial Bombing.
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the distribution of strikes around a target at which artillery rounds have been fired or on which bombs have been dropped.
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a diagram showing such distribution.
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verb (used with object)
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to make or fashion after or according to a pattern.
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to cover or mark with a pattern.
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Chiefly British Dialect.
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to imitate.
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to attempt to match or duplicate.
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verb (used without object)
noun
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an arrangement of repeated or corresponding parts, decorative motifs, etc
although the notes seemed random, a careful listener could detect a pattern
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a decorative design
a paisley pattern
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a style
various patterns of cutlery
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a plan or diagram used as a guide in making something
a paper pattern for a dress
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a standard way of moving, acting, etc
traffic patterns
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a model worthy of imitation
a pattern of kindness
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a representative sample
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a wooden or metal shape or model used in a foundry to make a mould
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the arrangement of marks made in a target by bullets
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a diagram displaying such an arrangement
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verb
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to model
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to arrange as or decorate with a pattern
noun
Other Word Forms
- nonpatterned adjective
- patternable adjective
- patterned adjective
- patterner noun
- patternless adjective
- patternlike adjective
- patterny adjective
- repattern verb (used with object)
- semipatterned adjective
- subpattern noun
- unpatterned adjective
Etymology
Origin of pattern
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English patron, from Medieval Latin patrōnus “model,” special use of Latin patrōnus “legal protector, advocate”; patron
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The region’s major investors are in a holding pattern and haven’t announced changes to their investment strategies, Walters said.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026
Forty years later, Kendrick Lamar borrowed Gadson’s intricate rhythm pattern for “Sing About Me, I’m Dying of Thirst,” from the rapper’s 2012 breakthrough album, “Good Kid, M.A.A.D City.”
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026
The VanEck Semiconductor ETF has formed a bearish head and shoulders pattern and is now stuck between its downward-sloping 50-day simple moving average and 200-day moving average.
From Barron's • Apr. 2, 2026
Given the year-to-year volatility in monthly returns, April’s advantage over other months is not significant at the 95% confidence level that statisticians often use to assess whether a pattern is genuine.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 1, 2026
The pattern she didn’t fit was that she was a twelve-year-old girl by herself instead of with her parents.
From "City Spies" by James Ponti
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
