vignette
vignette Lexical Profile
vignette Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A brief, evocative description, account, or episode in literature, theater, or film that captures a single moment, character, or mood rather than a full plot.
"The novel is structured as a series of interconnected vignettes about daily life in a small coastal town."
A small illustration or portrait photograph whose edges fade gradually into the surrounding background without a definite border.
"She framed an antique oval vignette of her great-grandparents above the mantelpiece."
An ornamental design, often depicting trailing vines or floral motifs, placed on a title page or at the beginning or end of a chapter in a book.
"Each chapter of the nineteenth-century botanical treatise closed with a delicate woodcut vignette."
• verb
To finish or shade off a photograph or picture so that the edges fade gradually into the background without a sharp border.
"The photographer chose to vignette the portrait softly to draw attention to the subject's eyes."
To portray or describe a scene, character, or event in a brief, evocative sketch.
"In his memoir, the author deftly vignettes the eccentric professors who shaped his university years."
• Rhymes for vignette
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in the mid-18th century from French vignette, the diminutive of vigne ('vine'), originally referring to decorative border designs of trailing vines and grape leaves in medieval manuscripts and early printed books.