Oeuvre
noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A work of art, music or literature.
"(Calvin) This piece is about the inadequacy of traditional imagery and symbols to convey meaning in today's world. By abandoning representationalism, I'm free to express myself with pure form. Specific interpretation gives way to a more visceral response. (Hobbes) I notice your oeuvre is monochromatic. (Calvin) Well c'mon, it's just snow."
- 2 the total output of a writer or artist (or a substantial part of it) wordnet
- 3 A substantial or complete corpus of works produced by a artist, composer, or writer. collective, uncountable
"the complete oeuvre of Mozart"
Example
More examples"(Calvin) This piece is about the inadequacy of traditional imagery and symbols to convey meaning in today's world. By abandoning representationalism, I'm free to express myself with pure form. Specific interpretation gives way to a more visceral response. (Hobbes) I notice your oeuvre is monochromatic. (Calvin) Well c'mon, it's just snow."
Etymology
From French œuvre, from Old French uevre, from Latin opera (plural of Latin opus), from Proto-Indo-European *h₃ep- (“work”). Doublet of opera, opus, and ure.
Related phrases
More for "oeuvre"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.