physiognomy

  • 1Physiognomy — (Gk. physis , nature and gnomon , judge, interpreter) is the assessment of a person s character or personality from their outer appearance, especially the face. The term physiognomy can also refer to the general appearance of a person, object or… …

    Wikipedia

  • 2Physiognomy — Phys i*og no*my, n.; pl. {Physiognomies}. [OE. fisonomie, phisonomie, fisnamie, OF. phisonomie, F. physiognomie, physiognomonie, from Gr. ?; fy sis nature + ? one who knows or examines, a judge, fr. ?, ?, to know. See {Physic}, and {Know}, and cf …

    The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • 3physiognomy — physiognomy, physiology Physiognomy (pronounced with the g silent) is ‘the cast or form of a person s features’, whereas physiology is ‘the science of the functions of living organisms and their parts’ …

    Modern English usage

  • 4physiognomy — index appearance (look), feature (appearance) Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …

    Law dictionary

  • 5physiognomy — late 14c., art of judging characters from facial features, from L.L. physiognomia, from Gk. physiognomia the judging of a person s nature by his features, from physio , comb. form of physis nature (see PHYSIC (Cf. physic)) + gnomon (gen.… …

    Etymology dictionary

  • 6physiognomy — *face, countenance, visage, mug, puss …

    New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • 7physiognomy — ► NOUN (pl. physiognomies) ▪ a person s facial features or expression, especially when regarded as indicative of character. ORIGIN Greek phusiogn monia, from phusis nature + gn m n judge or interpreter …

    English terms dictionary

  • 8physiognomy — [fiz΄ē äg′nə mē; ] chiefly Brit [, fiz΄ēän′ə mē] n. [ME fisonomie < MFr phisonomie < ML physonomia < Gr physiognōmonia < physis, nature (see PHYSIC) + gnōmōn, one who knows: see GNOMON] 1. the practice of trying to judge character and …

    English World dictionary

  • 9physiognomy — physiognomic /fiz ee og nom ik, ee euh nom /, physiognomical, physiognomonic /fiz ee og neuh mon ik, on euh /, physiognomonical, adj. physiognomically, physiognomonically, adv. physiognomist, n. /fiz ee og neuh mee, on euh mee/, n., pl.… …

    Universalium

  • 10physiognomy — [[t]fɪ̱ziɒ̱nəmi[/t]] physiognomies N COUNT Your physiognomy is your face, especially when it is considered to show your real character. [FORMAL] He was fascinated by her physiognomy the prominent nose, brooding eyes and thick hair. Syn: face …

    English dictionary