Definition of: pattern

(pat′ərn) noun
1. An original or model proposed for or worthy of imitation: Ancient Athens was a pattern of democracy.
2. Anything shaped or designed to serve as a model or guide in making something else: a pattern for a coat.
3. Any decorative design or figure, or such design worked on something: a vase with a geometrical pattern.
4. Arrangement of natural or accidental markings: the pattern of a butterfly's wings.
5. The stylistic composition or design of a work of art: the pattern of Hardy's novels.
6. A complex of integrated parts functioning as a whole: the behavior pattern of a five–year–old; patterns of American culture.
7. In gunnery, the distribution of shot or shots about a target.
8. A representative example; sample or instance: a book of patterns.
9. U.S. Material in sufficient quantity to make a garment, especially a dress.
10. Obs. Something made after a model or prototype; a copy. See synonyms under EXAMPLE, IDEA, IDEAL, MODEL, SIGN.
—v.t.
1. To make after a model or pattern: with on, upon, or after.
2. To decorate or furnish with a pattern. [Alter. of PATRON]