work of art

noun phrase

1
: a product of one of the fine arts
especially : a painting or sculpture of high artistic quality
2
: something giving high aesthetic satisfaction to the viewer or listener

Examples of work of art in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Olana is often described as his greatest work of art. — Susan Tallman, The Atlantic, 13 June 2026 This rep is basically a work of art. — Jesse Newell, New York Times, 3 June 2026 The architecture itself is a work of art. — Sarah Kingdom, Forbes.com, 14 June 2026 The front door is a work of art that features a large leaded glass insert and leaded glass sidelights. — James Alexander, Hartford Courant, 21 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for work of art

Word History

First Known Use

1585, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of work of art was in 1585

Rhymes for work of art

See All Rhymes for work of art

Browse Nearby Words

work miracles
work of art
work off
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Work of art.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/work%20of%20art. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All