n. [ F. modèle, It. modello, fr. (assumed) L. modellus, fr. modulus a small measure, dim. of modus. See Mode, and cf. Module. ] 1. A miniature representation of a thing, with the several parts in due proportion; sometimes, a facsimile of the same size; as, a 1/100 scale model of the B-52 bomber. [ 1913 Webster ]
In charts, in maps, and eke in models made. Gascoigne. [ 1913 Webster ]
I had my father's signet in my purse,
Which was the model of that Danish seal. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]
You have the models of several ancient temples, though the temples and the gods are perished. Addison. [ 1913 Webster ]
2. Something intended to serve, or that may serve, as a pattern of something to be made; a material representation or embodiment of an ideal; sometimes, a drawing; a plan; as, the clay model of a sculpture; the inventor's model of a machine. [ 1913 Webster ]
[ The application for a patent ] must be accompanied by a full description of the invention, with drawings and a model where the case admits of it. Am. Cyc. [ 1913 Webster ]
When we mean to build
We first survey the plot, then draw the model. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]
3. Anything which serves, or may serve, as an example for imitation; as, a government formed on the model of the American constitution; a model of eloquence, virtue, or behavior. [ 1913 Webster ]
4. That by which a thing is to be measured; standard. [ 1913 Webster ]
He that despairs measures Providence by his own little, contracted model. South. [ 1913 Webster ]
5. Any copy, or resemblance, more or less exact. [ 1913 Webster ]
Thou seest thy wretched brother die,
Who was the model of thy father's life. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]
6. A person who poses as a pattern for an artist; as, the artist used his daughter as a model for an Indian maiden. [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]
7. A person who is employed to wear clothing for the purpose of advertising or display, or who poses with a product for the same purpose; a mannequin{ 1 }; as, a fashion model.
Syn. -- mannequin{ 1 }. [ PJC ]
A professional model. H. James. [ 1913 Webster ]
8. A particular version or design of an object that is made in multiple versions; as, the 1993 model of the Honda Accord; the latest model of the HP laserjet printer. For many manufactured products, the model name is encoded as part of the
model number.
Syn. -- modification{ 2 }. [ PJC ]
9. An abstract and often simplified conceptual representation of the workings of a system of objects in the real world, which often includes mathematical or logical objects and relations representing the objects and relations in the real-world system, and constructed for the purpose of explaining the workings of the system or predicting its behavior under hypothetical conditions; as, the administration's model of the United States economy predicts budget surpluses for the next fifteen years; different models of the universe assume different values for the cosmological constant; models of proton structure have grown progressively more complex in the past century. [ PJC ]
Working model, a model of a machine which can do on a small scale the work which the machine itself does, or is expected to do. [ 1913 Webster ]