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Vinony

arabesque

noun

  1. type of music
L316413 on Wikidata ↗

Wiktionary

Pronunciation: /ˌæɹ.əˈbɛsk/ / /ˌɛɹ.əˈbɛsk/

noun

Etymology: Borrowed from French arabesque, from Italian arabesco, from arabo (“Arab”). By surface analysis, Arab + -esque.

  1. An elaborate design of intertwined floral figures or complex geometrical patterns, mainly used in Islamic art and architecture.

    “The house of Ruthven was a small but ultra-modern limestone affair, between Madison and Fifth ;[…]. As a matter of fact its narrow ornate façade presented not a single quiet space that the eyes might rest on after a tiring attempt to follow and codify the arabesques, foliations, and intricate vermiculations of what some disrespectfully dubbed as “ near-aissance.””

  2. An ornate composition, especially for the piano.
  3. A dance position in which the dancer stands on one leg, with the other raised backwards, and the arms outstretched.
  4. Elaborate or ornate creations in general.

    “It was a sort of scene which Adam had beheld almost weekly for years; he knew by heart every arabesque flourish in the framed specimen of Bartle Massey’s handwriting which hung over the schoolmaster’s head, by way of keeping a lofty ideal before the minds of his pupils; […].”

    “For a man who condemned worldly pleasures he ate with elegance. She loved to watch the arabesque of fingers and two forks.”

verb

Etymology: Borrowed from French arabesque, from Italian arabesco, from arabo (“Arab”). By surface analysis, Arab + -esque.

  1. To move in an arabesque motion.
  2. To decorate with an arabesque pattern.