pattern

pat|tern¹ W1S3 [ˈpætən US ˈpætərn] n

[Date: 1300-1400; : Old French; Origin: patron, from Medieval Latin patronus; PATRON]

1.) the regular way in which something happens, develops, or is done

▪ Weather patterns have changed in recent years.

pattern of

▪ changing patterns of behaviour among students

▪ The child showed a normal pattern of development .

pattern in

▪ They noticed patterns in the data.

▪ A general pattern began to emerge .

▪ Their descriptions seemed to follow a set pattern (=always develop in the same way) .

▪ His behavior fits a pattern of violent acts.

2.)

a) a regularly repeated arrangement of shapes, colours, or lines on a surface, usually as decoration

▪ a black and white striped pattern

pattern of

▪ a pattern of dots

b) a regularly repeated arrangement of sounds or words

▪ A sonnet has a fixed rhyming pattern.

3.) [usually singular]

a thing, idea, or person that is an example to copy

▪ The book set the pattern for over 40 similar historical romances.

4.) a shape used as a guide for making something, especially a thin piece of paper used when cutting material to make clothes

▪ a dress pattern

5.) a small piece of cloth, paper etc that shows what a larger piece will look like

= ↑sample

pattern ²

pattern² v [T]

1.) be patterned on/after sth

to be designed or made in a way that is copied from something else

▪ The exam system is patterned after the one used in Japan.

2.) literary to form a pattern on something

▪ Tiny white flowers patterned the ground like confetti.