n. The act of composing or compounding, or the state of being composed, compounded, or made up; union of different things or principles into an individual whole; the production of a whole by the union or combination of parts, constituents, or elements.n. Specifically— The act of producing a literary work.n. The art of putting words and sentences together in accordance with the rules of grammar and rhetoric: as, Greek prose composition.n. In printing, the setting of type; type-setting; in a wider sense, the preparation of type for use in the production of printed sheets, including setting, correction of errors, making up, and imposition.n. In philology, the union of two (rarely more than two) independent words to form a single word (called a compound); the formation of a word out of other existing words, as rainbow from rain and bow; and so gentleman, lifelike, fulfil, etc. See compound word, under compound, adjectiven. In music, the art of composing music according to scientific rules. Composition is said to be strict when it follows certain recognized rules of musical form, and free when it is more or less independent of such rules.n. In the fine arts, arrangement or grouping of parts, especially harmonious grouping, or that combination of the several parts whereby a subject or an object is agreeably presented to the mind, each part being subordinate to the whole.n. Combination; orderly disposition; regulation.n. Specifically, an act of combination such that the distinctive characters of the parts are modified.n. That which results from composing, as a literary, musical, or artistic production; specifically, a short essay written as a school exercise.n. That which results from the combination or union of several ingredients; a compound: as, type-metal is a composition of lead and antimony.n. Specifically The combination of materials of which printers' inking-rollers are made.n. The manner in which or the stuff of which anything is composed; general constitution or make-up; structure.n. Hence Congruity; consistency.n. The compounding or reconciling of differences, or of different interests; a mutual settlement or agreement; now, specifically, an agreement between a debtor and a creditor by which the latter accepts part of the debt due to him in satisfaction of the whole.n. The sum or rate paid, or agreed to be paid, in compounding with creditors: as, he has agreed to pay a composition of 60 cents on the dollar, or of 12 shillings in the pound.n. In music: The combination of sounds which form a compound stop in an organ.n. A mechanical contrivance for moving the handles of organ-stops in groups.n. The synthetical mode of procedure in investigation or exposition; synthesis.n. In chem., the kind and relative amounts of the components of a compound; commonly, the kind and relative weights of the elements, or the kind and number of the atoms, which makeup the compound.
