different between style vs description

English

Etymology

The noun is derived from Middle English stile, stel, stele, stiel, stiele, stil, still, stille, styele, style, styill, styll, styyl (“writing tool, stylus; piece of written work; characteristic mode of expression, particularly one regarded as high quality; demeanour, manner, way of life; person's designation or title; stem of a plant; period of time”), from Old French style, estile, stil, stile (modern French style), or from Medieval Latin stylus, both from Latin stilus (“pointed instrument, pale, spike, stake; writing tool, stylus; act of setting down in writing, composition; characteristic mode of expression, style; stem of a plant”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)teyg- (“to be sharp; to pierce, prick, puncture, stab; to goad”). Doublet of stylus.

The English word is cognate with Catalan estil (“engraving tool, stylus; gnomon; manner of doing something, style; fashionable skill, grace”), German Stiel (“handle; stalk”), Italian stilo (“needle, stylus; fountain pen; beam; gnomon; part of pistil, style”), Occitan estil, Portuguese estilo (“writing tool, stylus; manner of doing something, style”), Spanish estilo (“writing tool, stylus; manner of doing something, style; fashionable skill, grace; part of pistil, style”).

The verb is derived from the noun.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, General American) enPR: st?l, IPA^(key): /sta?l/
• Homophone: stile
• Rhymes: -a?l

Noun

style (countable and uncountable, plural styles)

1. Senses relating to a thin, pointed object.
   1. (historical) A sharp stick used for writing on clay tablets or other surfaces; a stylus; (by extension, obsolete) an instrument used to write with ink; a pen.
   2. A tool with a sharp point used in engraving; a burin, a graver, a stylet, a stylus.
   3. The gnomon or pin of a sundial, the shadow of which indicates the hour.
   4. (botany) The stalk that connects the stigma(s) to the ovary in a pistil of a flower.

      Synonym: stylet
   5. (surgery) A kind of surgical instrument with a blunt point, used for exploration.

      Synonym: stylet

   6. (zoology) A small, thin, pointed body part.

      Synonym: stylet

      1. (entomology) A long, slender, bristle-like process near the anal region.

2. (by extension from sense 1.1) A particular manner of expression in writing or speech, especially one regarded as good.
   1. A legal or traditional term or formula of words used to address or refer to a person, especially a monarch or a person holding a post or having a title.
3. A particular manner of creating, doing, or presenting something, especially a work of architecture or art.
   1. A particular manner of acting or behaving; (specifically) one regarded as fashionable or skilful; flair, grace.
   2. A particular way in which one grooms, adorns, dresses, or carries oneself; (specifically) a way thought to be attractive or fashionable.
   3. (computing) A visual or other modification to text or other elements of a document, such as boldface or italics.
   4. (printing, publishing) A set of rules regarding the presentation of text (spelling, typography, the citation of references, etc.) and illustrations that is applied by a publisher to the works it produces.

Alternative forms

• stile (obsolete)
• stylee (music, slang)

Derived terms

Descendants

• ? Japanese: ????
• ? Korean: ??? (seutail)

Related terms

• stylus

Translations

See also

• substance

Verb

style (third-person singular simple present styles, present participle styling, simple past and past participle styled)

1. (transitive) To design, fashion, make, or arrange in a certain way or form (style)
2. (transitive, formal) To call or give a name or title to.

   Synonyms: designate, dub, name; see also Thesaurus:denominate
3. (transitive, informal) To create for, or give to, someone a style, fashion, or image, particularly one which is regarded as attractive, tasteful, or trendy.
4. (intransitive, US, informal) To act in a way which seeks to show that one possesses style.

Conjugation

Alternative forms

• stile (obsolete)

Derived terms

Translations

References

Further reading

• style (disambiguation) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Anagrams

• lyest, tyles

French

Alternative forms

• stile (obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle French stile, from Old French estile, borrowed from Latin stilus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /stil/

Noun

style m (plural styles)

1. style (manner of doing something)
2. (botany) style (of a flower)
3. fashion, trend, style
4. (colloquial) style (personal comportment)
5. flair
6. (art) style; method characteristic of an artist; artistic manner or characteristic by which an artistic movement may be defined
7. gnomon, style (needle of a sundial)
8. (dated, historical) stylus, style (implement for writing on tablets)
9. complement of jargon particular to a field; style (manner of writing specific to a field or discipline)
10. sort, type; category of things

Synonyms

• (manner of doing): façon, manière
• (artistic characteristic): genre
• (needle of a sundial): aiguille (d'un cadran), gnomon
• (stylus): stylet
• (category): espèce, genre, sorte, type

Derived terms

Further reading

• “style” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Middle English

Etymology 1

From Old English sti?el.

Noun

style

1. Alternative form of stile (“stile”)

Etymology 2

From Medieval Latin stylus.

Noun

style

1. Alternative form of stile (“style”)

Polish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?st?.l?/

Noun

style

1. plural of styl
2. accusative plural of styl
3. vocative plural of styl

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from English style.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /is.?taj.li/, /?staj.li/, /i?.?taj.li/

Adjective

style (invariable, comparable)

1. (Brazil, slang) stylish

English

Etymology

From Old French description, from Latin d?scr?pti?, noun of action of d?scr?b? (“I describe”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /d??sk??p??n/

Noun

description (countable and uncountable, plural descriptions)

1. A sketch or account of anything in words; a portraiture or representation in language; an enumeration of the essential qualities of a thing or species.
2. The act of describing; a delineation by marks or signs.
3. A set of characteristics by which someone or something can be recognized.

   The zoo had no lions, tigers, or cats of any description.

4. (taxonomy) A scientific documentation of a taxon for the purpose of introducing it to science.

   The type description of the fungus was written by a botanist.

5. (linguistics) The act or practice of recording and describing actual language usage in a given speech community, as opposed to prescription, i.e. laying down norms of language usage.
6. (linguistics) A descriptive linguistic survey.

Synonyms

• (characteristics): sort, kind, type, variety

Derived terms

Related terms

• describe
• descriptive

Translations

See also

• prescription
• descriptivism

Further reading

• description in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• description in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

See also

• synopsis
• interpretation

Anagrams

• discerption, predictions

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin d?scripti?.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d?s.k?ip.sj??/
• Homophone: descriptions

Noun

description f (plural descriptions)

1. description

Related terms

• décrire
• descriptif

Further reading

• “description” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Old French

Etymology

From Latin d?scripti?.

Noun

description f (oblique plural descriptions, nominative singular description, nominative plural descriptions)

1. description

Related terms

• descrivre