form

the phonological or orthographic sound or appearance of a word that can be used to describe or identify something; "the inflected forms of a word can be represented by a stem and a list of inflections to be attached"

a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality; "sculpture is a form of art"; "what kinds of desserts are there?"

a perceptual structure; "the composition presents problems for students of musical form"; "a visual pattern must include not only objects but the spaces between them"

alternative names for the body of a human being; "Leonardo studied the human body"; "he has a strong physique"; "the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak"

the spatial arrangement of something as distinct from its substance; "geometry is the mathematical science of shape"

the visual appearance of something or someone; "the delicate cast of his features"

a printed document with spaces in which to write; "he filled out his tax form"

(biology) a group of organisms within a species that differ in trivial ways from similar groups; "a new strain of microorganisms"

an arrangement of the elements in a composition or discourse; "the essay was in the form of a dialogue"; "he first sketches the plot in outline form"

a particular mode in which something is manifested; "his resentment took the form of extreme hostility"

(physical chemistry) a distinct state of matter in a system; matter that is identical in chemical composition and physical state and separated from other material by the phase boundary; "the reaction occurs in the liquid phase of the system"

a body of students who are taught together; "early morning classes are always sleepy"

a life-size dummy used to display clothes

create (as an entity); "social groups form everywhere"; "They formed a company"

to compose or represent:"This wall forms the background of the stage setting"; "The branches made a roof"; "This makes a fine introduction"

develop into a distinctive entity; "our plans began to take shape"

give shape or form to; "shape the dough"; "form the young child's character"

make something, usually for a specific function; "She molded the rice balls carefully"; "Form cylinders from the dough"; "shape a figure"; "Work the metal into a sword"

establish or impress firmly in the mind; "We imprint our ideas onto our children"