Etymologically
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depiction

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 31 October 2026 at 15:24. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • UK: /dɪˈpɪkʃ(ə)n/, /dəˈpɪkʃ(ə)n/[1]
  • US: /dɪˈpɪkʃ(ə)n/[1]

Etymology

The OED and Merriam-Webster take it as borrowed from Late Latin dēpictiō (“painting, description”),[2][3][4] a noun of action from dēpictus, the past participle of dēpingō (“to portray, paint, sketch; to describe”).[2][5][6] Etymonline and Barnhart derive it through French depiction.[5][6] The OED notes a single Old French example of depiction from 1426, not known later.[2] The Latin verb is formed from dē- (“down”) and pingō (“to paint”),[5][6][7] the source of paint and picture.[5][7] The English verb depict is recorded from before 1420, in Lydgate's “Troy Book”.[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The action of depicting; a painted representation or a picture, and also a vivid description in words: 1688, in Randle Holme's Academy of Armory.[2][6]

Semantic evolution

The noun followed its verb, which meant to paint or portray from the early 15th century and to portray in words from the mid-15th century.[5][6] It covered both kinds of representation from its first record,[2] and Etymonline glosses its early sense as the act of portraying, and also a portrayal or likeness.[5] The OED entry has not been revised since 1895.[2]

Timeline

  • before 1420 – the verb depict, in Lydgate.[6]
  • 1426 – Old French depiction, a single record.[2]
  • 1688 – the action of depicting; a picture or description.[2][6]

Meanings

Noun

  1. The act of showing something in a picture or describing it in words; portrayal.[3][2][1]
  2. A picture, image or description of something: The novel's depiction of village life is affectionate but unsentimental.[3][1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ Gove, Philip Babcock, ed. (1961), Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam
  5. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  7. ^ a b Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.