The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.
Filigree — Fil i*gree, a. Relating to, composed of, or resembling, work in filigree; as, a filigree basket. Hence: Fanciful; unsubstantial; merely decorative. [1913 Webster] You ask for reality, not fiction and filigree work. J. C. Shairp. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
filigree — or filágree [fil′i grē΄] n. [altered from earlier filigrain < Fr filigrane < It filigrana < L filum, a thread (see FILE1) + granum, GRAIN] 1. delicate, lacelike ornamental work of intertwined wire of gold, silver, etc. 2. any delicate… … English World dictionary
filigree — 1690s, shortening of filigreen (1660s), from Fr. filigrane filigree (17c.), from It. filigrana, from L. filum thread (see FILE (Cf. file) (v.)) + granum grain (see CORN (Cf. corn) (1)). Related: Filigreed … Etymology dictionary
filigree — [n] ornamental art fretwork, interlace, lacework, lattice, ornamentation, tracery; concept 473 … New thesaurus
filigree — (also filagree) ► NOUN ▪ delicate ornamental work of fine gold, silver, or copper wire. DERIVATIVES filigreed adjective. ORIGIN from Latin filum thread + granum seed ) … English terms dictionary
Filigree — For the concrete system, see Filigree concrete. sterling Horse and Buggy, Filigree work … Wikipedia
filigree — /fil i gree /, n., adj., v., filigreed, filigreeing. n. 1. delicate ornamental work of fine silver, gold, or other metal wires, esp. lacy jewelers work of scrolls and arabesques. 2. anything very delicate or fanciful: a filigree of frost. adj. 3 … Universalium
filigree — I. noun Etymology: modification of French filigrane, from Italian filigrana, from Latin filum + granum grain more at corn Date: 1693 1. ornamental work especially of fine wire of gold, silver, or copper applied chiefly to gold and silver surfaces … New Collegiate Dictionary
filigree — [17] Etymologically, filigree describes very accurately how filigree was originally made: it was delicate ornamental work constructed from threads (Latin filum) and beads (Latin grānum ‘grain, seed’). The Italian descendants of these two Latin… … The Hutchinson dictionary of word origins
filigree — fil•i•gree [[t]ˈfɪl əˌgri[/t]] n. adj. v. greed, gree•ing 1) jew delicate ornamental work of fine silver, gold, or other metal wires, esp. lacy jewelers work of scrolls and arabesques 2) anything very delicate or fanciful: a filigree of… … From formal English to slang
