Re: Ideas and definitions of what is “a design” in a broad sense
Dear Kari-Hans,
Interesting issue. Here are the definitions of design as a noun from two major English-language dictionaries.
Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary is the editorial desk dictionary used at most academic publishing houses and university presses. This is the lexical source for Merriam-Webster’s online. M-W also includes some compound nouns.
The Oxford English Dictionary is the most comprehensive dictionary of the English language. In addition to etymology and definitions, the OED provides usage exemplars situated in the texts of the living language for current usage and past language for earlier forms of usage. OED also includes uses of the noun design in phrases and compound nouns.
[1] Merriam-Webster’s
Main Entry:2design
Function:noun
Date:1569
1 a: a particular purpose held in view by an individual or group <he has ambitious ∼s for his son> b: deliberate purposive planning <more by accident than ∼>
2: a mental project or scheme in which means to an end are laid down
3 a: a deliberate undercover project or scheme : PLOT<http://www.britannica.com/bps/dictionary?query=plot> b: plural: aggressive or evil intent used with on or against <he has ∼s on the money>
4: a preliminary sketch or outline showing the main features of something to be executed <the ∼ for the new stadium>
5 a: an underlying scheme that governs functioning, developing, or unfolding : PATTERN<http://www.britannica.com/bps/dictionary?query=pattern>, MOTIF<http://www.britannica.com/bps/dictionary?query=motif> <the general ∼ of the epic> b: a plan or protocol for carrying out or accomplishing something (as a scientific experiment); also the process of preparing this
6: the arrangement of elements or details in a product or work of art
7: a decorative pattern <a floral ∼>
8: the creative art of executing aesthetic or functional designs
synonyms see INTENTION, PLAN<http://www.britannica.com/bps/dictionary?query=intention,%20plan>
--
Main Entry:graphic design
Function:noun
Date:1935
the art or profession of using design elements (as typography and images) to convey information or create an effect; also a product of this art
— graphic designer noun
--
Main Entry:intelligent design
Function:noun
Date:1847
the theory that matter, the various forms of life, and the world were created by a designing intelligence
--
Main Entry:interior design
Function:noun
Date:1927
the art or practice of planning and supervising the design and execution of architectural interiors and their furnishings
--
Merriam-Webster Dictionary. 2012. Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Encyclopedia Britannica Online. URL:
http://www.britannica.com/ Accessed 2012 December 12.
[2] Oxford English Dictionary
OED Online 2012
design, n.
Pronunciation:
Brit. /dᵻˈzʌɪn/ , U.S. /dəˈzaɪn/ , /diˈzaɪn/
Forms: 15–16 deseigne, 15–16 designe, 15–16 desseigne, 15–16 dessein, 15–16 desseine, 15–16 disseigne, 15–16 dissein, 15–16 disseine, 15–16 dissigne, 15–17 deseign, 16 desseign, 16 desseing, 16 dessigne, 16 desyine, 16 desyne, 16 disseene, 16 dissinge, 16– design, 17 desine; Sc. pre-17 deseing, pre-17 deseynes (plural), pre-17 desinct, pre-17 desine, pre-17 desing, pre-17 dessein, pre-17 desseine, pre-17 desseing, pre-17 desseyn, pre-17 desseynge, pre-17 desyne, pre-17 disseignes (plural), pre-17 dissein, pre-17 dissinge, pre-17 17– design. (Show Less)
Etymology: < Middle French desain, desaing, desseign, Middle French, French †desing, †desseing, †dessing (French dessein and dessin , with semantic differentiation: see below) drawing, sketch (1529 as desseing ), plan, project (1548 as desain : see below), ground plan (1549 as desing ) < desseigner , dessiner , designer design v.<http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/50841#eid7005057>, but influenced semantically by Italian disegno (also †dissegno , †designo ) preliminary sketch for a literary work (a1400 with reference to a literary work, a1444 with reference to drawing), art or process of drawing or sketching (14th or 15th cent.), project, intention (a1471), graphic representation (a1519; < disegnare design v.<http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/50841#eid7005057>). The English standard form shows remodelling after design v.<http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/50841#eid7005057>
The formal differentiation of French dessein (in senses corresponding to branch I.) vs. dessin (in senses corresponding to branch II.) was not complete until the end of the 18th cent.; the Academy dictionary of 1798 was the first dictionary to make this distinction consistently. For a detailed discussion of the orthographic history of both French words, see N. Catach et al. (1995) Dict. hist. de l’orthographe française (at cited words).
Some older etymological dictionaries of French give a 15th-cent. dating for the sense ‘plan, project’ of the French word. This date is spurious, as the text from which the alleged occurrence is taken, the Chronique des chanoines de Neufchâtel, is an 18th-cent. forgery.
Compare Spanish diseño (1589; 1511 as †designo).
I. A plan conceived in the mind, and related senses.
1. A plan or scheme conceived in the mind and intended for subsequent execution; the preliminary conception of an idea that is to be carried into effect by action; a project.
1565 in J. H. Burton Reg. Privy Council Scotl.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1877) 1st Ser. I. 369 Thinking with that clok [of religion] to covir thair uther ungodlie disseignes.
1572 I. B. Let. Peopling & Inhabiting Ardes<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Cj.v, I will open to you some what of my designe, and the reasons haue persuaded me therto.
1615 G. Sandys Relation of Journey<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 61 The Emperour vndertaketh no high designe without his [sc. the Grand Signior’s] approuement.
1652 R. Brome Joviall Crew<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> ii. sig. E2, I..over-heard you in your queint designe, to new create your selves.
1738 J. Wesley Psalms<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> ii. 1 Why do the Jews and Gentiles join To execute a vain Design?
1829 R. Southey Inscriptions Caledonian Canal ii, in Anniversary<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 196 What inexhaustive springs of public wealth The vast design required.
1875 W. Stubbs Constit. Hist.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> II. xv. 293 The adaptability of his people to the execution of his design.
1907 Catholic Encycl.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> II. 440/2 It was no part of St. Benedict’s design that his spiritual descendants should make a figure in the world as..pioneers of civilization, as revivers of agriculture, [etc.].
1975 B. Reardon Liberalism & Trad.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> ix. 200 Gratry’s ambitious design of a completed system of Christian philosophy was never quite accomplished.
2000 S. Cameron Dominican Republic Handbk.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (Footprint) 171 Any remaining old buildings were torn down by Balaguer..as part of his grand design to make the Samaná Peninsula into a huge tourist resort.
2.
a. Chiefly with on, upon. A plan to attack someone or something; an inclination or plot to gain possession of something, esp. in a cunning or devious manner; (also) in extended use: such a plot or inclination to attract or win a person’s love. Now chiefly in pl. Freq. in to have designs on .
1590 tr. Coppie of Anti-Spaniard<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 23 Who..contriued all his desseines vppon the ruine and ouerthrowe of our poore France?
1648 Earl of Monmouth tr. G. Gualdo Priorato Hist. Late Warres<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> xiv. 422 Crequi..suspecting that the Spaniards designes might bee upon Rossegnano, Moncalvo, and Pontestura.
1690 J. Locke Two Treat. Govt.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (Laslett ed.) II. §16 A sedate setled Design, upon another Mans Life.
1705 C. Cibber Careless Husband<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> ii. i. 13 To be in Love now is only having a Design upon a Woman, a modish way of declaring War against her Virtue.
1777 E. Pendleton Let. 13 Sept. in Lett. & Papers<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1967) I. 223 The Governor and Council or General must have received some Intelligence of the Enemy’s designs upon that quarter, or they would not have carried the Northward men so far South.
1859 E. Bulwer-Lytton What will he do with It?<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> I. i. i. 5 He..had..no designs on your pocket.
1910 Encycl. Brit.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> I. 579/2 The emperor..suspected Peter of harbouring murderous designs against his son.
1981 M. Moorcock Byzantium Endures<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> v. 113 Esmé clutched my arm so tightly..that I began to suspect she had designs on me.
2002 D. Levitas Terrorist Next Door<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> xxxiv. 244 They have designs on my farm, my neighbour’s farm. They have designs on the whole earth.
b. A stratagem or scheme involving cunning or hypocrisy. Also as a mass noun: scheming of this kind. Now somewhat arch.
1594 I. T. tr. T. Watson Ould Facioned Love<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> iii. 14 He flies with wings and ioies in false designes.
1620 N. Brent tr. P. Sarpi Hist. Councel of Trent<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> ii. 142 Those that had vnderstanding, were discouered to haue deseignes, and hard to be gouerned.
1680 H. Prideaux Lett.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1875) 81 Those rogues have designes goeing on, but if the King will but put on a little rigour he may easyly quel them.
1719 D. Defoe Life Robinson Crusoe<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 247 A..faithful..Servant..without Passions, Sullenness or Designs.
1796 Bp. R. Watson Apol. for Bible<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 276 If this mistake proceeds from design you are still less fit.
1840 A. Strickland Lives Queens of Eng.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> I. 320 He resolved to detain the lady prisoner in his fortress till she complied with his proposal. Eleanora suspected his design.
1871 B. Taylor tr. Goethe Faust<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> I. v. 119 ‘T was all deceit, and lying, false design!
1910 M. Macbeth Winning Game<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> viii. 64 Leslie wondered whether by any Satanic intuition he guessed that she had led him there by dark design.
2005 F. Dallmayr Small Wonder<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> x. 202 Aware of their scheming design, Jesus urged them to produce a piece of money.
3.
a. In weakened sense: a purpose, an aim, an intention.
1597 Shakespeare Richard III<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> i. ii. 198 That it would please thee leaue these sad designes, To him that hath more cause to be a mourner.
1656 B. Harris tr. J. N. de Parival Hist. Iron Age<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> I. iv. viii. 112 They who ask reliefe, have one designe; and he who gives it, another.
1697 Dryden tr. Virgil Pastorals vi, in tr. Virgil Wks.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 27 He..demands On what design the Boys had bound his hands.
1736 Bp. J. Butler Analogy of Relig.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> i. iii. 46 The Design of this Chapter is to inquire, how far this is the Case.
1792 B. Munchhausen’s Trav.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> xxx. 135 They extended an elephant’s hide, tanned and prepared for the design, across the summit of the tower.
1830 Reg. Pennsylvania<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Aug. 128/2 Their design is to communicate, in familiar language, such kinds of information.
1866 G. MacDonald Ann. Quiet Neighb.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1878) xxxiii. 564 My design had been to go at once to London.
1916 Out West Mag.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> July 29/2 Any organization..whose design is to give advantages to its members that are not possessed by the general public, is obviously iniquitous.
1990 H. V. Savitch in J. Bellush & D. Netzer Urban Politics N.Y. Style<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> ix. 262 Koch helped establish the New York City Partnership,..whose design was to promote business growth.
†b. An intended course of travel. Cf. design v. 10<http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/50841#eid7005807>. Obs. rare.
1725 D. Defoe New Voy. round World<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> i. 61 My Design was, to the North Part of the Island.
4. That which is aimed at; an end in view; an ultimate goal or purpose.
1615 in J. R. N. Macphail Highland Papers<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1920) III. 219 For no uther desing bott only for saiftie of my avin puir lyfe.
a1616 Shakespeare Macbeth<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1623) ii. i. 55 Wither’d Murther..towards his designe Moues like a Ghost.
1657 O. Cromwell in W. B. Scoones Four Cent. Eng. Lett.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 86 We desire..that the design be Dunkirk rather than Grauelines.
1711 Lady M. W. Montagu Let.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 24 Mar. (1965) I. 95 Happynesse is the natural design of all the World.
1770 C. Jenner Placid Man<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1773) I. 120 Lion-hunting..being the whole end and design of travelling.
1833 T. Chalmers On Power Wisdom & Goodness of God<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> I. iv. 177 Virtue was the design of our Creation.
1878 Metrop. Pulpit<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> June 270/1 Church music has only one design, and that is devotion.
1914 T. J. Sullivan Merchants & Manufacturers on Trial<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> xvi. 125 Slavery allows the master..to resist that improvement which is the design..of the Creator.
1996 M. Dean in A. Barry et al. Foucault & Polit. Reason<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> x. 224 A fourth set of questions concerns the telos of government, that is, the aim, end, goal or design.
5. Fulfilment of a prearranged plan; adaptation of means to an end. Chiefly in theological contexts, with reference to the belief that the universe manifests divine forethought and testifies to an intelligent creator, usually identified as God (cf. intelligent design n.<http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/273877#eid140075125>, argument from design n. at Phrases 3).
1665 T. Manley tr. H. Grotius De Rebus Belgicis<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 141 Either out of Design, or Simplicity.
1736 Bp. J. Butler Analogy of Relig.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> ii. Concl. 289 Ten thousand thousand Instances of Design, cannot but prove a Designer.
1796 E. Burke Thoughts Prospect Regicide Peace<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 39 Nothing in the Revolution..was left to accident. All was the result of design; all was matter of institution.
1855 Tennyson Maud xxiii. i, in Maud & Other Poems<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 76 What a lovely shell,..With delicate spire and whorl, How exquisitely minute, A miracle of design!
1860 C. Darwin Let. 22 May in Life & Lett.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1887) II. 105, I cannot see as plainly as others do..evidence of design and beneficence on all sides of us.
1922 C. A. Beckwith Idea of God<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> vi. 127 The teleological argument proceeds on the basis that the presence of ends in nature is a proof of design, and from design thus indicated is drawn the inference of a designer.
1981 C. Birch & J. B. Cobb Liberation of Life<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1984) ii. 50 So much of our structural design, particularly the skeleton, evolved from quadruped life.
2006 R. Dawkins God Delusion<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (2008) 24 The illusion of design in the living world..is explained by Darwinian natural selection.
II. An artistic sketch, and related senses.
6. A preliminary drawing or sketch; a plan, outline, or model produced to show the look or function of a building, machine, or other object before it is made or built.
1624 H. Wotton Elements Archit.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> i. 50 Errors euer occurring more easily in the management of grosse Materials, then Lineall Designes.
1645 N. Stone Enchiridion of Fortification<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Table sig. F3v, Profile, an Italian word for that designe that showes the side..of any work.
1700 Moxon’s Mech. Exercises: Bricklayers-wks.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 15 ‘Tis usual..for any person before he begins to Erect a Building, to have Designs or Draughts drawn upon Paper..in which Designs..each Floor or Story is Delineated.
1793 J. Smeaton Narr. Edystone Lighthouse<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (ed. 2) §278 The necessary designs for the iron rails of the balcony.
1821 W. M. Craig Lect. Drawing<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> i. 29 That these itinerant workmen had a certain set of designs, or rather patterns, handed down from generation to generation.
1898 Overland Monthly<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Feb. 152 (caption) A design in rough for the proposed monument of Balboa.
1924 Boy’s Life<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Nov. 23/1 We have sent word to all the Lone Scout artists on record asking them to submit a design for a new Merit medal.
1950 J. Rood Sculpt. in Wood<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 64 You have, I hope, made a design of your own and not followed the one shown here.
2010 J. O’Connor Mastering Mental Ray<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> ix. 272 It is rare for an architectural project to come to us and stay the way that the initial designs detailed.
7.
a. The art of drawing or sketching; (hence) the process, practice, or art of devising, planning, or constructing something (as a work of art, structure, device, etc.) according to aesthetic or functional criteria; (also) this as a subject of study or examination.
graphic, industrial, interior, product, web design, etc.: see the first element.
1638 F. Du Jon Painting of Ancients<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 271 [From] Designe and Proportion..we should proceed to Colour.
1662 J. Evelyn Sculptura<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> sig. b8 (contents) Passions expressible by the art of Designe.
1753 W. Hogarth Anal. Beauty<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> ii. 17 Variety uncomposed, and without design, is confusion and deformity.
1768 Scots Mag.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Dec. 664/1 The principal object..is to be the establishment of well-regulated schools of design, where students in the arts may find..instruction.
1788 T. Pownall Notices & Descr. Antiq. Provincia Romana of Gaul<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> p. x, Sieur Schneyder, the Master of Design to the College.
1850 J. Leitch tr. C. O. Müller Anc. Art<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> §25. 9 Design or the graphic art..produces by means of light and shade the appearance of bodies on a surface.
1877 W. C. Unwin (title) The elements of machine design.
1919 G. M. Whipple Classes for Gifted Children<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 127 Two were students in the Department of Art and Design of the University of Illinois.
1976 R. Dawkins Selfish Gene<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1978) ix. 171 A fashion in women’s clothes, or in American car design.
1983 Pop. Sci.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Sept. 82/2 The long, frustrating years of design and development..were over.
2003 K. Cole Footnotes<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 58 Having gone from law school to a career in design might have seemed like a leap.
b. The completed product or result of this process; the arrangement of features in something planned or produced according to aesthetic or functional criteria; a particular shape, style, or model.
c1660 J. Evelyn Diary<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> anno 1644 (1955) II. 139, That which made me desirous of seeing this Palace was the extravagance of the designe.
a1697 J. Aubrey Nat. Hist. Surrey<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1718) II. 53 A noble and most curious Monument of white and vein’d Italian Marble, of a beautiful Design, and well perform’d.
1756 tr. J. G. Keyssler Trav.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> I. 501 The gardens of Caprorola are likewise of an elegant design.
1797 A. Radcliffe Italian<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> I. Prol. p. v, Simplicity and grandeur of design.
1851 D. Wilson Archaeol. & Prehist. Ann. Scotl.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1863) II. iii. v. 133 A silver bracelet of rare and most artistic design.
1895 Electr. Engineer<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 1 Mar. 270/1 They have on view samples of their newest designs in gas and electric light fittings.
1913 E. C. Vivian Hist. Aeronaut.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> xiii. 197 In 1913 a machine of his design, a tractor byplane, raised the British height record to 13,000 feet.
1988 Organbuilder<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> May 26/2 The Cremona..is a consequence of the peculiar design of the Chair organ.
2010 Vanity Fair (N.Y.) <file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Sept. 166/1 The new Aquariva retains the look of the classic lake-boat design.
c. A decorative pattern.
1670 Sir S. Crow Let. 3 May in 12th Rep. Royal Comm. Hist. MSS<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1890) App. v. 15 Theire ordnary designes..beeing deformed and mishapen.
1787 New Lady’s Mag.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Jan. 53/1 The petticoat..embroidered with a beautiful design of stones, fringe, and foils.
1863 ‘G. Eliot’ Romola<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> II. xix. 224 To admire the designs on the enamelled silver centres.
1884 Times<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 20 Sept. 6/1 It is the design that sells the cloth.
1909 G. W. James Indian Basketry<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> xii. 191 A Quinaielt basket bore a certain design, a favorite pattern in the tribe.
1973 R. L. Fox Alexander the Great<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> i. ii. 31 One of their later mosaic floors probably took its design of centaurs from a painting.
2009 M. Wood Laura Ashley<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 36 (caption) An early apron printed with a design similar to those used on tea towels.
Phrases
P1. by (also out of, †on, †upon) design : on purpose, deliberately, intentionally; freq. contrasted with accident n. 7<http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/1051#eid39895317>.
[After Middle French, French par dessein (1592 in the passage translated in quot. 1603), perhaps itself after Italian per disegno (a1566). Compare Italian a disegno (1603).]
1603 J. Florio tr. Montaigne Ess.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> i. xl. 127 The greatest number of Philosophers are found to have either by designe [Fr. par dessein] prevented, or hastned and furthered their deaths.
1628 T. Hobbes tr. Thucydides Peloponnesian War<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1822) 65 The man being upon design gone..into Sanctuary.
1650 T. Fuller Pisgah-sight of Palestine<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> ii. xii. 261 On design to extirpate all the smiths in Israel.
1665 T. Manley tr. H. Grotius De Rebus Belgicis<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 141 Either out of Design, or Simplicity.
a1715 Bp. G. Burnet Hist. Own Time<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1724) I. Pref. 4, I have on design avoided all laboured periods.
1769 Junius Lett.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1771) I. xiii. 65 It is not that you do wrong by design, but that you should never do right by mistake.
1816 Monthly Repos.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Sept. 528/1 No man by design injures his circumstances, few by design injure their health.
1867 E. A. Freeman Hist. Norman Conquest<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1876) I. App. 628 William, whether by accident or by design, was not admitted.
1879 Sabbath School Mag.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 1 Jan. 14 All this was done on design.
1930 Amer. Jrnl. Sociol.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 35 1109 Whether by design, or unconsciously, Park has not touched..on the use of the life-history procedure as an instrument of natural science.
1983 A. Alland Playing with Form<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 192 Young children often produce effective representations..of human beings by accident rather than by design.
2003 N. Atkin Forgotten French<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> i. 15 Most had come to Britain not out of design..but by chance.
P2. in (also under) design : at the planning stage; in the process of being designed.
1645 D. Buchanan Short Rel. Main Passages of Things<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 20 It is the custome of the wise Court, to have, at one and the same time, divers undertakings in designe.
1702 R. Stephens in F. Bacon Lett.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Introd. p. vi, Materials..to be added, towards the erecting that new Fabrick of the Sciences which he had long had in Design.
1809 W. Cobbett Cobbett’s Compl. Coll. State Trials<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> IV. 650 Waller..was the principal actor and contriver of this Plot, which was in design when he and the other commissioners were at Oxford.
1873 Morning Post<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 8 Aug. 4/5 The question of the width and size of docks was raised..on the occasion of the Director of Works’ proposal as to the size of the docks then under design.
1949 Bull. Atomic Scientists<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Mar. 81/2 This has been under design at the Argonne National Laboratory for the past two years.
2008 M. Bennett in S. Schaltegger et al. Environmental Managem. Accounting for Cleaner Production<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> xxv. 446 The new system..was in design at the time of this research but was only subsequently implemented.
P3.
argument from design n. Theol. an argument for the existence of an intelligent creator (usually identified as God) based on perceived evidence of deliberate design in the natural or physical world (cf. sense 5).
1802 W. Paley Nat. Theol.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> ii. 12 The argument from design remains as it was.
1880 H. A. Mott Was Man Created?<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 138 The Teleological Argument, or argument from design or final causes, is as follows: Design, or the adaptation of means to effect an end, implies the exercise of intelligence and free choice.
1920 I. Edman Human Traits & their Social Significance<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> xii. 318 The arguments from design..were, if not disproved, at least rendered dubious.
1987 V. P. Dawson Nature’s Enigma<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 73 Both works placed great emphasis on the argument from design.
2001 D. Z. Phillips Relig. & Hermeneutics of Contempl.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 7 While Hume revealed the bankruptcy of the argument from design, he could not see beyond it.
P4.
arts of design n. now arch. and hist. arts in which preliminary drawings or sketches play a principal part, such as painting, sculpture, or architecture.
a1652 I. Jones Most Notable Antiquity called Stone-Heng<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1655) 1 Being naturally inclined in my younger years to study the Arts of Designe, I passed into forrain parts to converse with the great Masters thereof in Italy.
1797 Monthly Mag.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Mar. 185/2 Those arts of design, of which the Royal Academy of London is now so illustrious a school.
1841 W. Osburn Antiq. Egypt<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> x. ii. 218 The arts of design flourished greatly under these Pharaohs.
1889 Photogr. Times<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 3 May 220/1, I shall attempt to show what the true art in photography is, and how it differs from the arts of design.
1995 G. Bull Michelangelo<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1998) 117 The pope favoured literature rather more than the arts of design.
Compounds
C1.
a. General attrib. (in sense 7), as design course, design student, design studio, design team, etc.
1860 Brit. Controversialist<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 3rd Ser. 3 71/2 A design class, though commenced late in the season, made great progress.
1894 Leeds Mercury<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 13 Sept. 3/3 The design studio..is in close proximity to the textile museum..[since] a large number of students are studying art as applied to the decoration of woven fabrics.
1911 Arts & Decoration<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Jan. 121/3 A design course of two years.
1920 School Arts<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Feb. 344/1 The design students..may work out little problems in wood right in the classroom.
1937 Textile Mercury & Argus<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 16 July 63/2 Latch-hook design. This design motif..is the characteristic mark of Caucasian rugs and carpets.
1951 J. Lewin Considerations Choice of Working Stresses in Assoc. Engin. & Shipbuilding Draughtsmen<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> i. 7 If the stress corresponding to failure which a material can withstand is denoted by f , the design stress is given by f/n where n is called a factor of safety.
1973 Gramophone<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Jan. 1433/3 The paper..discussed the design concept and production processes of the BRC 70 and 80 series.
1985 Personal Computer World<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Feb. 41 (advt.) Its colour graphics..make it welcome in design studios.
1993 D. A. Norman Things that make us Smart<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 105 The design team should start by considering the tasks that the artifact is intended to serve and the people who will use it.
2011 Daily Tel.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 19 Aug. 5/6 David scored straight As in design technology, maths and physics.
b.
design consultancy n.
1956 Financial Times<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 19 Mar. 6/7 Your Midland Representative’s article ‘Industry’s Need of Draughtsmen’..is an outspoken attack against the design consultancy profession.
2007 M. Hespe Industr. Design<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 59 At a design consultancy, you can use all your design skills to turn concepts into reality.
design consultant n.
1942 N. C. Meier Art in Human Affairs<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> ii. 52 The newest steel-and-leather furniture may be in accordance with the recommendations of the highest paid design consultants.
2001 S. Walton You heard it through Grapevine<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> i. 10 The design consultants..had reconfigured everything from the letterhead to the colour of the seats in reception.
design engineer n.
1897 M. A. Dubois Hist., Organisation & Results 11 in Proc. Internat. Railway Congr. 1895<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 4, Besides the documents published by the Commission and a report by M. Morandicre, design engineer.., and by M. Lancrenon, assistant chief engineer.., [etc.].
1964 F. L. Westwater Electronic Computers<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> iii. 49 Not infrequently, a design engineer will ask the logical designer to make alterations for various reasons.
2004 Contract Jrnl.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 14 Jan. 14/5 To deal with the complex load cases specified by the design engineers, Tarmac Precast used de-bonding techniques during manufacture.
design feature n.
1929 Pop. Mechanics<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> June 886 (caption) A larger cabin and improved streamline design feature.
1959 Princ. Forced Circulation in Hot Water Heating Syst.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (1960) 8 This method may be used for houses..with normal design features for windows and doors.
2001 C. Friend in R. Catlow & S. Greenfield Cosmic Rays<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 29 Think about the possibilities for generating ‘pet appeal’—the design feature which makes us ‘fall in love’ with products.
design flaw n.
1941 Scribner’s Commentator<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> June 47/1 It wasn’t long before he happened upon the remedy, eliminating a serious design flaw that had stumped the best engineering brains analyzing the problem.
2003 T. J. Parenty Digital Def.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> v. 51 Researchers found a design flaw in the algorithm used to encrypt cellular telephone calls in the United States, which meant anyone with a computer and a scanner could listen in.
design phase n.
1922 Army Ordnance<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> July–Aug. 149/2 In passing from the development or design phase to that of manufacture, I wish to call to your attention the necessity of knowing..the types of ammunition required.
2001 K. B. Hall & G. A. Porterfield Community by Design<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> i. iii. 50 You might say that if you have a good program you have already begun the design phase.
design process n.
1923 Pop. Mech.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Apr. 624/2 Too great accuracy is not to be expected at any point in the design process here outlined.
1948 Jrnl. Architect. Educ.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (Assoc. Collegiate Schools Architect.) 3 64, I disagree with the idea that conception of construction as a design process tends to cellularization.
2005 N. Gershenfeld Fab<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 122 Sketches can be scanned into a computer as a starting point in the design process.
design stage n.
1920 L. Bairstow Appl. Aerodynamics<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> ii. 55 Such phenomena..are reproduced in the model with sufficient accuracy for the phenomena to be kept under control in the design stages of a flying boat.
1988 Proc. 8th Internat. Custom Microelectronics Conf.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> xiii. 1 Should delays occur due to problems encountered in the design stage, product launch dates will slip.
2004 P. Hymers New Home Builder<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> iv. 76 You might think it is a bit premature at the design stage to be thinking of digging foundations, but there is a reason why you need to consider this early on.
C2.
design argument n. = argument from design n. at Phrases 3.
1843 Oracle of Reason<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> No. 58 47/1 Investigation of the ‘Design’ argument.
1912 F. J. McConnell Increase of Faith<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> ii. 54 Even though we abjure altogether the old-and-fast design arguments, we cannot get away from the suggestions of mental activity in the presence of arrangement.
2009 S. C. Meyer Signature in Cell<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (2010) xvii. 383 Hume refuted the classical design argument in biology by showing that it depends on a flawed analogy between living forms and human artifacts.
design automation n. Computing and Electronics (more fully electronic design automation) the use of computer software to automatically design electronic systems, esp. integrated circuits; freq. attrib.
1959 Managem. Sci.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 6 (end matter), Computer programming at IBM is being extended to include many new areas—such as orbit computation,..design automation, [etc.].
1992 Microelectronics Jrnl.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 23 318/1 Perhaps the weakest chapter in comparison with the remainder is the final one covering design automation and verification.
2008 H. Kaeslin Digital Integrated Circuit Design<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> i. 29 The VLSI [sc. very-large-scale integration] industry long ago became entirely dependent on electronic design automation (EDA) software.
design book n. a book containing drawings, sketches, or examples of decorative patterns; (also) a book about the art or process of design (sense 7).
1842 Preston Chron. & Lancs. Advertiser<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 23 July 1/1 Design books may also be inspected at Skerton and Scotforth Marble Mills.
1936 Burlington Mag.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> Nov. 235/2 The silversmiths appear to have had in their minds the forms depicted in German design-books.
2007 T. Sikes Artful Home<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 32 Your photo would look right at home in the pages of a design book or magazine.
design conscious adj. aware of or interested in design (sense 7).
1946 Times<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 5 Feb. 3/1 (advt.) Cornercroft have always been design-conscious.
1960 Guardian<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 30 Sept. 10/2 Plagiarism..is a rare headache to the design-conscious Scandinavian nations.
2003 M. J. Crosbie Multi-family Housing<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 174 Neighbourhood residents are affluent, politically active, and design conscious.
design-led adj. motivated or driven by design considerations, esp. with regard to aesthetic or functional criteria, rather than commercial or consumer requirements (sometimes opposed to demand- or market-led).
1983 Guardian<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 22 Mar. 13/4 British managers have a view of culture and aesthetics which is inimical to producing design-led products.
1995 Sydney Morning Herald<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (Late ed.) (Nexis) 14 Mar. 14 Other architects..look down on their work, seeing it as severely compromised by commercial demands, as mindless and market-driven rather than design-led.
2009 M. Beverland Building Brand Authenticity<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 118 Research suggests design-led firms have a culture that embeds design thinking throughout the firm.
design life n. the period of time during which a device, system, etc., is expected to function correctly.
1922 Gen. Electric Rev.<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 25 424 The design life on these lamps is 1200 hours.
1978 New Scientist<file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> 7 Dec. 747/2 The packaging in which bulbs are sold should carry information on..the design life of the lamp.
2010 Herald (Glasgow) <file://localhost/javascript/void(0)> (Nexis) 26 May 15 Over their 60-year design life the two nuclear plants would deliver 1,577 TW [= terawatt]-hours of electricity.
Source: Oxford English Dictionary. 2012. OED Online. Oxford English Dictionary. 3rd edition. John Simpson, editor. Oxford: Clarendon Press. Oxford University Press. URL: http://www.oed.com/ Date accessed: 2012 December 12.
Yours,
Ken
Ken Friedman, PhD, DSc (hc), FDRS | University Distinguished Professor | Swinburne University of Technology | Melbourne, Australia | [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> | Mobile +61 404 830 462 | Home Page http://www.swinburne.edu.au/design/people/Professor-Ken-Friedman-ID22.html<http://www.swinburne.edu.au/design> Academia Page http://swinburne.academia.edu/KenFriedman About Me Page http://about.me/ken_friedman
Guest Professor | College of Design and Innovation | Tongji University | Shanghai, China
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