art

/ˈärt/

Middle English, "craft, principles of a craft or a field of knowledge, one of the seven fields of study comprising the medieval school curriculum, practical knowledge, code of behavior," borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French, "skill, craft, knowledge, deceit, sorcery," borrowed from Latin art-, ars "acquired skill, craftsmanship, stratagem, behavior (in plural artēs), systematic body of knowledge and techniques, profession, artistic achievement," going back to Indo-European *hr̥-ti- "act of fitting or joining" (whence also, perhaps from an adverbialized locative, Greek árti "just now," arti- "fitting, correct," Armenian ard "just now," Lithuanian artì "close by"), nominal derivative from the verbal base *her- "fit, join"

noun

  1. skill acquired by experience, study, or observation

  2. a branch of learning:

  3. one of the humanities

the art of making friends

art skill cunning artifice craft mean the faculty of executing well what one has devised. art implies a personal, unanalyzable creative power. skill stresses technical knowledge and proficiency.

adjective

  1. produced as an artistic effort or for decorative purposes

an art film