What does patterned mean?
Patterned chiefly describes something decorated with a repeated design or arrangement. It can refer to the visible motifs on fabric, clothing, wallpaper, pottery, or other surfaces, as in a patterned dress or a patterned rug. It may also characterize something marked by a conspicuous regular structure, such as light arranged in a patterned grid. As a past-tense or past-participle verb form, it means that something has been designed, arranged, or modeled according to an example or principle: a programme may be patterned after an earlier one, or the growth of the plants may be patterned in alternating rows. The word is neutral in tone and common in both British and American English. It is especially useful when the repetition is regular enough to be noticed but not necessarily ornate, distinguishing it from a merely plain or undecorated object.
Decorated with a repeated design or marked by a regular, recurring arrangement.
"The artist covered the canvas with a patterned border of leaves and stars."
Common for textiles, clothing, surfaces, and decorative designs; it can also describe a conspicuously regular arrangement in a broader sense.
To design, arrange, or model something according to an example, principle, or scheme.
"The organizers patterned the schedule after a successful previous tournament."
Usually appears in the passive or as the past participle, especially in figurative phrases such as “patterned after.”
The word ultimately reaches back to the Latin patron, “protector or model”: a design was once a model to be followed before it became a decorative repeat.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does patterned come from?
The adjectival and verbal form was formed from “pattern” with the suffix “-ed.” “Pattern” entered Middle English from Old French patron and ultimately from Latin patron, meaning “father, protector,” with the extended sense “model or example to be followed.” The decorative sense developed as patterns came to mean repeated designs and models used in copying. Related words including patron, patronage, and patronize preserve the same Latin origin.
How patterned is actually used
In its primary adjectival sense, the word is common in descriptions of fabric, clothing, surfaces, and decorative arts. Figurative uses, especially in the construction “patterned after,” refer to imitation or organization according to a model. In British and American English, it normally has a single “t” and one syllable in “pattern.”
Easily confused with patterned
Patterned means marked with a design or regular arrangement, whereas pattered means to move or fall with a series of light, quick sounds or steps.