artistry

Etymology

It is formed from English artist + -ry,^[2][3][4][5] like chemistry from chemist.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Artistic qualities, artistic ability or execution: about 1765, in Love in High Life.^[2][6] Etymonline dates the word to 1837,^[3] and Dictionary.com to 1865–70.^[4]

Semantic evolution

Klein regarded the word as Browning's coinage;^[5] the OED's first quotation for the rare sense "the work of an artist; artists collectively" is from Browning's Red Cotton Night-cap Country (1873).^[2] The main sense, artistic quality or skill, can now be used of any activity done with great skill.^[7][6]

Timeline

• c. 1765 – artistic quality, ability or execution.^[2][6]
• 1873 – the work of an artist; artists collectively (rare), in Browning.^[2]

Meanings

Noun

1. Artistic skill, quality or workmanship: the artistry of her violin playing.^[7][6][2]
2. Great skill in any activity, as if it were an art.^[7][6]
3. (rare) The work of an artist; artists as a group.^[2][7]

Related words

• art
• artist
• artisan

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
5. ^ a b Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
6. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
7. ^ a b c d Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins