aesthetic
UK /iːsˈθɛ.tɪk/ · US /ɛsˈθɛ.tɪk/ adjective, noun
Forms aesthetics æsthetic esthetic
- adjective Concerned with beauty, artistic effect, or appearance. “It works well enough, but the shabby exterior offends his aesthetic sensibilities.”
- adjective (rarely proscribed) Beautiful or appealing to one's sense of beauty or art. “The design of the lobby cannot be considered particularly aesthetic.”
- noun (usually in the plural) The study of art or beauty.
- noun (often in the plural) That which appeals to the senses.
- noun The set of artistic motifs defining a collection of things, especially works of art; more broadly, their aura or “vibe”. “Her most recent works have this quirky, nonchalant aesthetic inspired by ’90s teen culture.”
Synonyms
Antonyms
Etymology
From German Ästhetik or French esthétique, both from New Latin aesthēticus, itself borrowed from Ancient Greek αἰσθητικός (aisthētikós, “of sense perception”), from αἰσθάνομαι (aisthánomai, “to feel”); analysable as aesthe(sis) + -tic.
Cognates include Proto-Germanic *awiz (“obvious”), Sanskrit आविस् (āvís, “manifestly, evidently”) and Latin audiō.
Webster’s 1913
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “aesthetic”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details