figures

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of figure.

   The artist sketched two figures standing near a doorway.

   Sales figures rose sharply in the final quarter.

   Note

   A regular plural whose spelling is shared with the present-tense verb, so context decides between "the figures in the painting" and "she figures it out." The plural fits most of the noun's meanings: diagrams in a report, carved or painted forms, people who stand for something. The obsolete sense of splendor or show belongs to the singular and rarely makes sense pluralized.

2. 2
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present of figure.

   My brother figures the bill in his head faster than a calculator.

   The coach figures that a day of rest will help the team recover.

   Note

   One spelling carries a wide spread of meaning: she figures the cost (calculates it), he figures it will rain (supposes so), a name figures in the story (is part of it), an artist figures a scene (depicts it). The calculating and understanding uses are American, as is the intransitive 'makes sense' use behind the shrug 'It figures'. Whether an object follows usually tells them apart.

3. 3
   phrasecolloquial

   A remark made when an unwelcome or unsurprising outcome turns out to be exactly what one would have predicted.

   We waited an hour and then the meeting was canceled; it figures.

   It figures that the printer would jam right before the deadline.

   Note

   A whole remark built from a shortened sentence. Behind it is the intransitive verb meaning "to be reasonable or predictable," so "it figures" says "that stands to reason." Spoken alone, it is a dry, resigned reply to bad news that should have been expected. The fuller "It figures that…" names the outcome. It is colloquial, suited to conversation rather than formal prose.

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