composition

American  

[kom-puh-zish-uhn] / ˌkɒm pəˈzɪʃ ən /

noun

1. the act of combining parts or elements to form a whole.

2. the resulting state or product.

3. manner of being composed; structure.

   This painting has an orderly composition.

4. makeup; constitution.

   His moral composition was impeccable.

5. an aggregate material formed from two or more substances.

   a composition of silver and tin.

6. a short essay written as a school exercise.

7. the act or process of producing a literary work.

8. an academic course for teaching the techniques of clear, expository writing.

9. the art of putting words and sentences together in accordance with the rules of grammar and rhetoric.

10. a piece of music.

11. the art of composing music.

12. Fine Arts. the organization or grouping of the different parts of a work of art so as to achieve a unified whole.

13. Grammar. the formation of compounds or derivatives.

    the composition of “aircraft” from “air” and “craft.”

14. a settlement by mutual agreement.

15. an agreement or compromise, especially one by which a creditor or group of creditors accepts partial payment from a debtor.

16. a sum of money so paid.

17. Printing.

    1. the setting up of type for printing.

    2. Also called pagination.  the makeup of pages for printing.

18. Mathematics. the process of making a composite function of two given functions.

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composition British  

/ ˌkɒmpəˈzɪʃən /

noun

1. the act of putting together or making up by combining parts or ingredients

2. something formed in this manner or the resulting state or quality; a mixture

3. the parts of which something is composed or made up; constitution

4. a work of music, art, or literature

5. the harmonious arrangement of the parts of a work of art in relation to each other and to the whole

6. a piece of writing undertaken as an academic exercise in grammatically acceptable writing; an essay

7. printing the act or technique of setting up type

8. linguistics the formation of compound words

9. logic the fallacy of inferring that the properties of the part are also true of the whole, as every member of the team has won a prize, so the team will win a prize

10. 1. a settlement by mutual consent, esp a legal agreement whereby the creditors agree to accept partial payment of a debt in full settlement

    2. the sum so agreed

11. chem the nature and proportions of the elements comprising a chemical compound

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Other Word Forms

• compositional adjective
• compositionally adverb
• compositive adjective
• compositively adverb

Etymology

Origin of composition

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English composicioun, from Anglo-French, from Latin compositiōn-, stem of compositiō “arrangement, placement together”; equivalent to composite + -ion

Explanation

Composition is another word for writing — the act of writing or the piece of writing that results. It also refers to what something is made of. The word composition comes from the Latin componere, meaning "put together" and its meaning remains close to this. Writing classes are often called composition classes, and writing music is also called composition. This can also describe things besides writing that are "put together." You could say an abstract painting has an interesting composition. Any mixture of ingredients can be called a composition. Geologists study the composition of the earth: what it's made of and how it formed.

Example Sentences

The artists’ achievements in color and composition are on brilliant display in exhibitions at two New York galleries.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026

"This allows us to gain a better understanding of how the substances work and determine the optimum composition of the toothpaste's active ingredients," Schilling explains.

From Science Daily • Apr. 13, 2026

The book club members reached out to ensure I was driving because, they said, it would determine the composition of their gift.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026

"I don't mean rainbow colors, but you know, dark browns or tan colors because that tells us something about the composition, and that tells us something about the history of the Moon."

From Barron's • Apr. 5, 2026

I take out a composition notebook and try to jot down everything he told me.

From "Finding Junie Kim" by Ellen Oh

Related Words

• architecture
• balance
• beauty
• configuration
• content
• design
• distribution
• formation
• harmony
• layout
• rhythm
• style