a function word that combines with a noun or pronoun or noun phrase to form a prepositional phrase that can have an adverbial or adjectival relation to some other word
(linguistics) the placing of one linguistic element before another (as placing a modifier before the word it modifies in a sentence or placing an affix before the base to which it is attached)
form a queue, form a line, stand in line; "Customers lined up in front of the store"
get something or somebody for a specific purpose; "I found this gadget that will serve as a bottle opener"; "I got hold of these tools to fix our plumbing"; "The chairman got hold of a secretary on Friday night to type the urgent letter"
any activity that is performed in an especially solemn elaborate or formal way; "the ceremony of smelling the cork and tasting the wine"; "he makes a ceremony of addressing his golf ball"; "he disposed of it without ceremony"
the proper or conventional behavior on some solemn occasion; "an inaugural ceremony"
a formal event performed on a special occasion; "a ceremony commemorating Pearl Harbor"
a mold for setting concrete; "they built elaborate forms for pouring the foundation"
the visual appearance of something or someone; "the delicate cast of his features"
a particular mode in which something is manifested; "his resentment took the form of extreme hostility"
an ability to perform well; "he was at the top of his form"; "the team was off form last night"
a perceptual structure; "the composition presents problems for students of musical form"; "a visual pattern must include not only objects but the spaces between them"
the phonological or orthographic sound or appearance of a word that can be used to describe or identify something; "the inflected forms of a word can be represented by a stem and a list of inflections to be attached"
a printed document with spaces in which to write; "he filled out his tax form"
an arrangement of the elements in a composition or discourse; "the essay was in the form of a dialogue"; "he first sketches the plot in outline form"
(biology) a group of organisms within a species that differ in trivial ways from similar groups; "a new strain of microorganisms"
assume a form or shape; "the water formed little beads"
create (as an entity); "social groups form everywhere"; "They formed a company"
to compose or represent:"This wall forms the background of the stage setting"; "The branches made a roof"; "This makes a fine introduction"
develop into a distinctive entity; "our plans began to take shape"