Pictures — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

noun verb phrase /ˈpik-chər/ pic·ture

Meaning & Definition of Pictures

Pictures (noun)

  1. a design or representation made by various means (such as painting, drawing, or photography)
  2. a description so vivid or graphic as to suggest a mental image or give an accurate idea of something
  3. a mental image
  4. a showing of a movie in a theater
  5. the entire perspective on a situation or issue —used with the
  6. b movie
  7. a series of still pictures displayed on a screen in rapid succession so as to produce the optical effect of continuous video
  8. a representation (as of a story) by means of motion pictures; especially, movie —often used before another noun
  9. the business or industry of making movies —usually used in plural
  10. motion picture

Pictures (verb)

  1. to form a mental image of, imagine
  2. to describe graphically in words
  3. to paint or draw a representation, image, or visual conception of, depict; also, illustrate

Pictures (phrase)

  1. in the movies or movie industry
  2. by means of pictures

Pictures (noun) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. the art or business of making a movie

    "hoping for a career in pictures"

    similar: big screen, cinema, film, filmdom, filmland, filmmaking, movie, moviemaking, screen, silver screen
    related: Bollywood, Hollywood, showbiz, show business

Pictures (verb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. to present a picture of

    "the famous painting that pictures the Founding Fathers signing the Declaration of Independence"

    similar: depicts, images, portrays, represents
    related: delineates, describes, documents, renders, outlines, silhouettes, sketches, illustrates, shows, diagrams, caricatures

  2. to form a mental picture of

    "could easily picture the mining town from the vivid description of it in the author's memoirs"

    similar: conceits (chiefly dialect), conceives, conjures (up), dreams, envisages, envisions, fancies, fantasies, fantasizes, features, ideates, images, imagines, sees, visions, visualizes
    related: daydreams, stargazes, hallucinates, re-creates, reflects, relives, reminisces, contemplates, meditates, muses, ponders, ruminates, concocts, fabricates, invents, makes up, manufactures, plans, projects, foresees, prefigures

  3. to give a representation or account of in words

    "pictured the sailing ship in vivid language"

    similar: delineates, depicts, describes, draws, images, limns, paints, portrays, renders, sets out, sketches
    related: characterizes, defines, labels, qualifies, represents, demonstrates, illustrates, narrates, recites, recounts, rehearses, relates, reports, tells, displays, exhibits, shows, hints, suggests, drafts, outlines, silhouettes, traces, vignettes, summarizes, sums up, touches off, redescribes, reimages
    near: colors, distorts, falsifies, garbles, misdescribes, misrepresents, misstates, perverts, twists, warps

  4. to make a representation of by producing lines on a surface

    "the next assignment is to picture your own face using colored pencils"

    similar: draws
    related: caricatures, cartoons, crayons, inks, pencils, outlines, profiles, scrawls, scribbles, sketches

Related Entry: Picture (noun)

Picture is a different word from Pictures. The synonyms below are for picture, not for pictures.

  1. a two-dimensional design intended to look like a person or thing

    "using only watercolors, she produced a strikingly lifelike picture of her mother"

    similar: icon, illustration, image, likeness
    related: delineation, depiction, representation, resemblance, view, portrait, daub, drawing, finger painting, etching, silhouette, sketch, watercolor, caricature, cartoon, doodle, collage, montage, photograph, hieroglyph, hieroglyphic, ideogram, ideograph, pictograph, diagram

  2. a story told by means of a series of continuously projected pictures and a sound track

    "the actor's latest picture is another thriller"

    similar: film, flick, flicker, motion picture, movie, moving picture
    related: animated cartoon, cartoon, docudrama, documentary, feature, featurette, short, short subject, silent, talkie, B movie, B picture, cofeature

  3. a vivid representation in words of someone or something

    "the newspaper report gives a detailed picture of the current situation in that troubled country"

    similar: definition, delineation, depiction, description, portrait, portraiture, portrayal, rendering, sketch, vignette
    related: account, anecdote, chronicle, narrative, report, story, tale, yarn, demonstration, exemplification, illustration, clarification, elucidation, explanation, explication, exposition

  4. position with regard to conditions and circumstances

    "when personal opinion becomes part of the picture, the journalist isn't just reporting the news"

    similar: ball game, deal, footing, posture, scene, situation, status, story
    related: rank, standing, place, spot, state, score, status quo

  5. something or someone that strongly resembles another

    "the young teen is the very picture of her mother"

    similar: alter ego, carbon, carbon copy, clone, counterpart, doppelgänger, double, duplicate, duplication, facsimile, fetch, image, likeness, look-alike, match, mirror image, replica, ringer, spit, spitting image, twin
    related: effigy, portrait, portrayal, companion, fellow, mate, equal, equivalent, analogue, parallel
    near: antithesis, converse, opposite, reverse

  6. something imagined or pictured in the mind

    "I think I get the picture: you want me to leave"

    similar: abstraction, cogitation, concept, conception, idea, image, impression, intellection, mind's eye, notion, thought
    related: apprehension, premonition, presentiment, preconception, prejudice, prepossession, chimera, delusion, hallucination, illusion, phantasm, caprice, conceit, fancy, freak, kink, vagary, whim, cognition, observation, perception, reflection, assumption, belief, conclusion, conviction, conjecture, guess, hunch, hypothesis, speculation, supposition, surmise, theory, brainchild, brainstorm, brain wave, inspiration
    near: actuality, fact, reality

  7. the art or business of making a movie

    "hoping for a career in pictures"

    similar: big screen, cinema, film, filmdom, filmland, filmmaking, movie, moviemaking, screen, silver screen
    related: Bollywood, Hollywood, showbiz, show business

Related Entry: Picture (verb)

Picture is a different word from Pictures. The synonyms below are for picture, not for pictures.

  1. to present a picture of

    "the famous painting that pictures the Founding Fathers signing the Declaration of Independence"

    similar: depict, image, portray, represent
    related: delineate, describe, document, render, outline, silhouette, sketch, illustrate, show, diagram, caricature

  2. to form a mental picture of

    "could easily picture the mining town from the vivid description of it in the author's memoirs"

    similar: conceit (chiefly dialect), conceive, conjure (up), dream, envisage, envision, fancy, fantasize, fantasy, feature, ideate, image, imagine, see, vision, visualize
    related: daydream, stargaze, hallucinate, re-create, reflect, relive, reminisce, contemplate, meditate, muse, ponder, ruminate, concoct, fabricate, invent, make up, manufacture, plan, project, foresee, prefigure

  3. to give a representation or account of in words

    "pictured the sailing ship in vivid language"

    similar: delineate, depict, describe, draw, image, limn, paint, portray, render, set out, sketch
    related: characterize, define, label, qualify, represent, demonstrate, illustrate, narrate, recite, recount, rehearse, relate, report, tell, display, exhibit, show, hint, suggest, draft, outline, silhouette, trace, vignette, summarize, sum up, touch off, redescribe, reimage
    near: color, distort, falsify, garble, misdescribe, misrepresent, misstate, pervert, twist, warp

  4. to make a representation of by producing lines on a surface

    "the next assignment is to picture your own face using colored pencils"

    similar: draw
    related: caricature, cartoon, crayon, ink, pencil, outline, profile, scrawl, scribble, sketch

Related Entry: B pictures (noun)

B pictures is a different word from Pictures. The synonyms below are for B pictures, not for pictures.

  1. as in B movies, cofeatures

    similar: B movies, cofeatures, silents, talkies, animated cartoons, cartoons, docudramas, documentaries, features, featurettes, shorts, short subjects, films, flickers, flicks, motion pictures, movies, moving pictures, pictures

Related Entry: Motion pictures (noun)

Motion pictures is a different word from Pictures. The synonyms below are for motion pictures, not for pictures.

  1. a story told by means of a series of continuously projected pictures and a sound track

    "a popular novel that was made into a major motion picture"

    similar: films, flickers, flicks, movies, moving pictures, pictures
    related: animated cartoons, cartoons, docudramas, documentaries, features, featurettes, shorts, short subjects, silents, talkies, B movies, B pictures, cofeatures

Related Entry: Moving pictures (noun)

Moving pictures is a different word from Pictures. The synonyms below are for moving pictures, not for pictures.

  1. a story told by means of a series of continuously projected pictures and a sound track

    "in the 20th century moving pictures became an important form of artistic expression"

    similar: films, flickers, flicks, motion pictures, movies, pictures
    related: animated cartoons, cartoons, docudramas, documentaries, features, featurettes, shorts, short subjects, silents, talkies, B movies, B pictures, cofeatures

Related Entry: Motion picture (noun)

Motion picture is a different word from Pictures. The synonyms below are for motion picture, not for pictures.

  1. a story told by means of a series of continuously projected pictures and a sound track

    "a popular novel that was made into a major motion picture"

    similar: film, flick, flicker, movie, moving picture, picture
    related: animated cartoon, cartoon, docudrama, documentary, feature, featurette, short, short subject, silent, talkie, B movie, B picture, cofeature

Related Entry: Moving picture (noun)

Moving picture is a different word from Pictures. The synonyms below are for moving picture, not for pictures.

  1. a story told by means of a series of continuously projected pictures and a sound track

    "in the 20th century moving pictures became an important form of artistic expression"

    similar: film, flick, flicker, motion picture, movie, picture
    related: animated cartoon, cartoon, docudrama, documentary, feature, featurette, short, short subject, silent, talkie, B movie, B picture, cofeature

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Pictures

The most common words with a similar meaning to Pictures:

Chiefly dialect: conceits
big screen, cinema, film, filmdom, filmland, filmmaking, movie, moviemaking, screen, silver screen, depicts, images, portrays, represents, conceives, conjures (up), dreams, envisages, envisions, fancies, fantasies, fantasizes, features, ideates, imagines, sees, visions, visualizes, delineates, describes, draws, limns, paints, renders, sets out, sketches

Related Words for Pictures

Bollywood, Hollywood, showbiz, show business, documents, outlines, silhouettes, illustrates, shows, diagrams, caricatures, daydreams, stargazes, hallucinates, re-creates, reflects, relives, reminisces, contemplates, meditates, muses, ponders, ruminates, concocts, fabricates, invents, makes up, manufactures, plans, projects

Near Antonyms of Pictures

colors, distorts, falsifies, garbles, misdescribes, misrepresents, misstates, perverts, twists, warps

Word Forms of Pictures

Inflections: pictured, picturing

Origin & Etymology of Pictures

Middle English, from Latin pictura, from pictus, past participle of pingere to paint paint

First known use: 15th century

Words & Phrases Containing Pictures

in pictures, the pictures

Frequently Asked Questions about Pictures

What does "Pictures" mean?

"Pictures" means a design or representation made by various means (such as painting, drawing, or photography). As an a noun, a verb and a phrase, it is defined as: a design or representation made by various means (such as painting, drawing, or photography). It has 5 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Pictures"?

Other words for "Pictures" include big screen, cinema, film, filmdom, filmland, filmmaking, movie and moviemaking. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Pictures" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Pictures"?

There are 100 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Pictures". Common alternatives include big screen, cinema, film, filmdom, filmland, filmmaking, movie, moviemaking, screen and silver screen.

How do you use "Pictures" in a sentence?

Examples of "Pictures" in a sentence: "hoping for a career in pictures"; "the famous painting that pictures the Founding Fathers signing the Declaration of Independence"; "could easily picture the mining town from the vivid description of it in the author's memoirs".

Is "Pictures" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Pictures" can be used as a noun, a verb and a phrase, depending on the context.

How do you pronounce "Pictures"?

"Pictures" is pronounced /ˈpik-chər/ and divided into syllables as pic·ture.

What is the origin of the word "Pictures"?

"Pictures" comes from Middle English, from Latin pictura, from pictus, past participle of pingere to paint paint. First known use: 15th century.

What is another word for "Pictures" meaning "the art or business of making a movie"?

When "Pictures" (noun) means the art or business of making a movie, synonyms include big screen, cinema, film, filmdom, filmland and filmmaking.