baroque adj 1: having elaborate symmetrical ornamentation; "the building...frantically baroque"-William Dean Howells [syn: baroque, churrigueresque, churrigueresco] 2: of or relating to or characteristic of the elaborately ornamented style of architecture, art, and music popular in Europe between 1600 and 1750 [syn: baroque, Baroque] n 1: the historic period from about 1600 until 1750 when the baroque style of art, architecture, and music flourished in Europe [syn: Baroque, Baroque era, Baroque period] 2: elaborate and extensive ornamentation in decorative art and architecture that flourished in Europe in the 17th century [syn: baroque, baroqueness]

baroque 1765, from M.Fr. baroque "irregular," from Port. barroco "imperfect pearl," Sp. berruca "a wart," origin unknown. "This style in decorations got the epithet of Barroque taste, derived from a word signifying pearls and teeth of unequal size." [Fuseli's translation of Winkelmann, 1765] Klein suggests the name may be from It. painter Federigo Barocci (1528-1612), a founder of the style. How to tell baroque from rococo, according to Fowler: "The characteristics of baroque are grandeur, pomposity, and weight; those of rococo are inconsequence, grace, and lightness." But the two terms often used without distinction for styles featuring odd and excessive ornamentation.

baroque I. adjective Usage: often capitalized Etymology: French, from Middle French barroque irregularly shaped (of a pearl), from Portuguese barroco irregularly shaped pearl Date: 1765 1. of, relating to, or having the characteristics of a style of artistic expression prevalent especially in the 17th century that is marked generally by use of complex forms, bold ornamentation, and the juxtaposition of contrasting elements often conveying a sense of drama, movement, and tension 2. characterized by grotesqueness, extravagance, complexity, or flamboyance 3. irregularly shaped — used of gems <a baroque pearl> • baroquely adverb II. noun Usage: often capitalized Date: 1877 the baroque style or the period in which it flourished

baroque
adj. & n.
--adj.
1 highly ornate and extravagant in style, esp. of European art, architecture, and music of the 17th and 18th c.
2 of or relating to this period.
--n.
1 the baroque style.
2 baroque art collectively.
Etymology: F (orig. = 'irregular pearl') f. Port. barroco, of unkn. orig.

baroque bəˈrɔk adj. & n. --adj. 1 highly ornate and extravagant in style, esp. of European art, architecture, and music of the 17th and 18th c. 2 of or relating to this period. --n. 1 the baroque style. 2 baroque art collectively. [F (orig. = 'irregular pearl') f. Port. barroco, of unkn. orig.]

Baroque ornamentation of a florid and incongruous character, more lavish and showy rather than true and tasteful; much in vogue from the 16th to the 18th centuries.

Baroque \Ba*roque"\, a. Irregular in form; -- said esp. of a pearl.

Baroque \Ba*roque"\, a. [F.; cf. It. barocco.] (Arch.) In bad taste; grotesque; odd.

baroque adj. [common] Feature-encrusted; complex; gaudy; verging on excessive. Said of hardware or (esp.) software designs, this has many of the connotations of elephantine or monstrosity but is less extreme and not pejorative in itself. "Metafont even has features to introduce random variations to its letterform output. Now _that_ is baroque!" See also rococo.

60 Moby Thesaurus words for "baroque": Gothic, arabesque, bizarre, brain-born, busy, chichi, deformed, dream-built, elaborate, elegant, embellished, extravagant, fanciful, fancy, fancy-born, fancy-built, fancy-woven, fantasque, fantastic, fine, flamboyant, florid, flowery, freak, freakish, frilly, fussy, gilt, grotesque, high-wrought, labored, luscious, luxuriant, luxurious, maggoty, malformed, misbegotten, misshapen, monstrous, moresque, notional, ornamented, ornate, ostentatious, outlandish, overelaborate, overelegant, overlabored, overworked, overwrought, picturesque, preposterous, pretty-pretty, rich, rococo, scrolled, teratogenic, teratoid, whimsical, wild

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