Vignette

Vignette

vinˈyet

Noun

  • A brief evocative description, account, or episode.
  • A small illustration or portrait photograph which fades into its background without a definite border.
  • A small ornamental design filling a space in a book or carving, typically based on foliage.

Verb

  • Portray (someone) in the style of a vignette.
  • Produce (a photograph) in the style of a vignette by softening or shading away the edges of the subject.

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Example Sentences

“The TV show’s premiere opened with a vignette of a flashback to the main character’s childhood.”

“Sandra’s stories from her college years were a perfect vignette of life in the Midwest.”

“The author vignetted her family members in the collection of short stories.”

Word Origin

French, mid-18th century

Why this word?

“Vignette” comes from the same word in French, which fuses “vigne,” meaning “vine,” with the diminutive suffix “-ette,” meaning “little.” The term was originally used in architecture to describe ornamental vine carvings, but was then used in mid-18th-century book publishing for the botanical-inspired ornamental drawings on chapter headings. By the 20th century, “vignette” was most closely associated with short literary works or anecdotes evocative of a particular time and situation. Literary vignettes (which can also be described as sketches) are often collected with similarly themed material, such as in Tim O’Brien’s Vietnam War meditation, “The Things They Carried.”

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