tableau
UK /ˈtæ.bləʊ/ · US /tæˈbloʊ/ noun
Forms tableaux tableaus
- noun A striking and vivid representation or scene; a picture.
- noun A vivid graphic scene of a group of people or objects arranged as in a painting or bas relief sculpture.
- noun (UK, dated, by extension) An arrangement of actors in static positions on stage, having the effect of pointing up a particular moment in the drama, conventionally revealed by opening tableau curtains (known as "tabs").
- noun (mathematics) A two-dimensional array or table of data, usually numbers, of various specific kinds.
- noun (linguistics, optimality theory) A table that shows constraint violations of a list of candidates given an input and a constraint ranking.
- noun (card games) Mostly in solitaire card games, but also in other card and board games, the main area, where random cards can be arranged.
- noun (logic) A semantic tableau.
- noun (theater) A unit of a play, an opera, or a ballet with change of stage setting.
Synonyms
Etymology
Unadapted borrowing from French tableau, from Old French tablel (“a surface which is used primarily for painting”).
Webster’s 1913
- noun A striking and vivid representation; a picture.
- noun A representation of some scene by means of persons grouped in the proper manner, placed in appropriate postures, and remaining silent and motionless.
Etymology [F., dim. fr. L. tabula a painting. See Table.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “tableau”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details