From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishcompositioncom‧po‧si‧tion /ˌkɒmpəˈzɪʃən $ ˌkɑːm-/ ●○○ noun 1 parts/members [countable, uncountable]CONSIST OF/BE MADE OF the way in which something is made up of different parts, things, or members → composecomposition of The composition of the group that is studied depends on the interests of the researcher. Some minerals have complex chemical compositions.2 music/writing a) [countable]WORK THAT somebody DOES a piece of music, a poem, or a piece of writing → compose, composer a composition by jazzman Dave Brubeck, called ‘Chromatic Fantasy’ a mixture of traditional songs and original compositions b) [uncountable]WRITE the art or process of writing pieces of music, poems etc The Journals contain accounts of literary composition.► see thesaurus at music3 picture [countable, uncountable]TCPAV the way in which the different parts that make up a photograph or picture are arranged Martin starts by lightly sketching in the compositions for his paintings.4 writing at school [countable]WRITE a short piece of writing about a particular subject, that is done at school SYN essay I had to write a composition about the Royal visit.5 printing [uncountable]TCN technical the process of arranging words, pictures etc on a page before they are printed —compositional adjective
Examples from the Corpus
composition• A teacher had assigned the class to make a composition by taping personal objects into a notebook.• We had to write a composition about our summer vacations.• Mrs. Blanchard teaches English and advanced composition.• The paintings of each series differ in terms of color and composition.• The color of a star depends on its chemical composition and its mass.• Zwilich's flute concerto was nominated for Best Contemporary Classical Composition.• This difference in function can lead to glaze compositions which are nor found among ancient glasses at all.• More recent studies have shown that hepatic denervation causes significant changes in the biliary lipid composition.• Blomstedt conducted a new composition by Charles Wuorinen.• Stone's composition "Idaho" became a national hit when Benny Goodman recorded it for Columbia.• Their social composition did not, it is true, greatly change.• Karina studied composition and music theory at the Juilliard School.• They are most definitely not required to know the composition of every household in their areas before billing.• Both factions disagree over the composition of a temporary government.• Increasingly intruding into those thoughts, though, was the composition of the relay team.• The composition of displaced terranes ranges from that of typical oceanic crust to significantly less dense granitic rock with clear continental affinities.From Longman Business Dictionarycompositioncom‧po‧si‧tion /ˌkɒmpəˈzɪʃənˌkɑːm-/ noun [countable usually singular] LAW an arrangement between a person or organization that owes money and the people or organizations the money is owed to concerning the way in which the debts should be repaidThe debtor may then make a composition with his creditors, but if this is not done he will be made bankrupt.Origin composition (1300-1400) Old French Latin compositio, from compositus; → COMPOSITE1 