WordValeoeuvre
the complete body of an artist's work
In more detail
1. (noun) the complete body of work created by an artist, writer, or composer
2. (noun) a single major work or masterpiece
Examples
- 1. Picasso's oeuvre spans many different artistic styles.
- 2. That novel is considered her greatest oeuvre.
How to use oeuvre
Oeuvre is a formal, somewhat literary term used primarily in art, literature, and music criticism to refer to an artist's complete body of work or sometimes a single major work within that body. It carries a sense of artistic significance and is more prestigious than the simple word 'work'. It is less commonly used in everyday speech and more typical of academic or critical contexts.
Common phrases
- complete oeuvre
- literary oeuvre
- artistic oeuvre
- throughout one's oeuvre
- his entire oeuvre
- masterpiece of the oeuvre
Synonyms
body of work · canon · output · collected works · opus
Word family
oeuvres (plural)
A common mistake
Learners sometimes use oeuvre as a countable noun in the singular when referring to multiple separate works (e.g., 'his three oeuvres' instead of 'three works from his oeuvre'), though oeuvre itself can be countable when distinguishing between different artists' complete bodies of work.
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