n.
- a three-dimensional representation of a person or thing, typically on a smaller scale.
▸(in sculpture) a figure in clay or wax, to be reproduced in a more durable material.
- a thing used as an example to follow.
▸a person or thing that is an excellent example of a quality:
she was a model of self-control.
- a person employed to display clothes by wearing them.
▸a person employed to pose for an artist, sculptor, etc.
- a particular version of a product.
▸a garment or a copy of a garment by a well-known designer.
- a simplified description, especially a mathematical one, of a system or process, to assist calculations and predictions.
v.
(models, modelling, modelled; US models, modeling, modeled)
- fashion or shape (a figure) in clay, wax, etc.
▸Art cause to appear three-dimensional.
-
(model something on/after)
use as an example to follow or imitate.
- display (clothes) by wearing them.
▸work as a model.
- devise a mathematical model of.
Derivative
Etymology
C16: from Fr. modelle, from Ital. modello, alt. of L. modulus (see modulus).