# frame

Pronunciation: say "FRAYM" /fɹeɪm/

## Noun

1. The structure of joined parts that supports and gives shape to a building, vehicle, or other constructed object.
   - Simple: The strong inner structure that holds something up and gives it its shape.
   - _The bridge's iron frame was designed to flex slightly in high winds._
   - _Engineers inspected the frame for cracks after the earthquake._
2. A rigid, usually rectangular support that holds paper, canvas, or other flexible material.
   - Simple: A stiff border, often a rectangle, that holds paper, canvas, or cloth in place.
   - _He fitted the print into a gilded frame before the exhibition._
   - _An embroidery hoop acts as a small frame, keeping the cloth taut while you sew._
3. The structure, size, and shape of a person's body; one's physical build.
   - Simple: The size and shape of a person's body.
   - _The new uniform looked too small for his broad frame._
   - _She carried the heavy pack easily on her sturdy frame._
6. A single image on a strip of photographic film, or one of the still images that make up a film, video, or animation.
   - Simple: One picture on a strip of camera film, or one of the many pictures that make up a movie or video.
   - _The lab found a fingerprint smudge on the last frame of the roll._
   - _He enlarged a single frame from the contact sheet for the show._
9. A particular context or perspective that shapes how something is understood or interpreted.
   - Simple: A way of looking at something that helps you understand it.
   - _Economists and historians approach the same event from very different frames._
   - _Seen through a moral frame, the story reads as a parable rather than a tragedy._
13. In ten-pin bowling, a turn made up of a set of balls (usually two, but one after a strike and up to three in the last frame) whose pinfall is added together for scoring.
   - Simple: In bowling, a turn that is usually two throws, with the pins counted together as one score.
   - _A strike in the tenth frame earned her two extra balls._
   - _He left a single pin standing at the end of the frame._
15. In baseball, an inning: one of the divisions of play in which each team takes a turn batting. *(slang)*
   - Simple: In baseball, one of the main parts of a game, also called an inning.
   - _He hit a home run in the seventh frame to tie the game._
   - _The reliever shut them down over the final two frames._
12. An independent chunk of data transmitted as a single unit over a network.
   - Simple: A small block of data sent as one unit over a network.
   - _The switch forwards each frame to its destination using the MAC address._
   - _Corrupted frames are detected and discarded by the receiver._
16. A region of a webpage that loads and scrolls independently of the surrounding content.
   - Simple: A part of a webpage that you can scroll on its own.
   - _The document opens inside a frame so the navigation bar stays in place._
   - _Older websites split the screen into several frames._
17. In snooker, a single complete game, played from the break-off shot until enough balls have been potted to decide the winner.
   - Simple: In snooker, one complete game, from the first shot until the balls have been potted.
   - _She clinched the match by taking the deciding frame._
   - _He potted the final black to steal the frame at the very end._
19. A movable structure used for growing or sheltering plants.
   - Simple: A movable cover that protects plants while they grow.
   - _Tender seedlings stayed in the frame until the weather warmed._
   - _He lifted the glass lid of the frame to water the young plants._

## Verb

4. To place a painting or photograph inside a decorative border.
   - Simple: To put a picture inside a border so you can hang it or show it.
   - _The gallery framed each etching in plain black wood._
   - _They decided to frame the wedding portrait in gold leaf._
5. To conspire to make an innocent person appear guilty of a crime.
   - Simple: To make someone look guilty of a crime they did not do.
   - _The corrupt officers framed an innocent bystander to close the case quickly._
   - _Defense attorneys argued that the police had moved to frame their client._
7. To position something visually within a fixed boundary, as within a shot or image.
   - Simple: To arrange something inside the edges of a picture or view.
   - _She framed the lighthouse against the breaking waves before pressing the shutter._
   - _Directors frame each scene to draw the eye toward the lead actor._
8. To express or shape something, such as an argument or question, so that it is understood in a particular way.
   - Simple: To say or present something in a way that makes people see it a certain way.
   - _The campaign tried to frame the merger as a victory for consumers._
   - _She framed her resignation as a chance for the team to start fresh._
10. To build something by fitting and joining its parts, especially the structural framework of a building.
   - Simple: To build something by joining its parts together, especially the frame of a house.
   - _The crew will frame the second story once the foundation has cured._
   - _Carpenters framed the addition with pressure-treated lumber._
11. To bring something into form or order; to compose, plan, contrive, or devise it.
   - Simple: To plan or put something together in an orderly way.
   - _The founders framed a constitution to guide the new nation._
   - _Experts were asked to frame a careful response to the crisis._
20. In tennis, to strike the ball with the rigid frame of the racquet rather than the strings, normally as a mishit.
   - Simple: In tennis, to hit the ball with the edge of the racquet instead of the strings, usually by mistake.
   - _He framed an easy volley and sent it sailing well past the baseline._
   - _Players sometimes frame the return when a fast serve rushes them._

## Noun

14. A particular mood or state of mind; one's disposition. *(dated)*
   - Simple: The mood or state of mind someone is in.
18. Any of various machines built upon or within a framework, such as the spinning and knitting machines of the early textile industry. *(dated, UK)*
   - Simple: A machine built on or inside a framework, such as an old knitting or spinning machine.
   - _The new spinning frame doubled the mill's output._
   - _The old cotton mill still has a spinning frame from the 1800s._
21. In video games, a stage or location that the player moves through, especially in older titles. *(dated)*
   - Simple: In older video games, a single stage or level.

## Other meanings

- (noun) In bowling, the complete set of pins arranged in their starting positions at the end of the lane, ready to be knocked down.
- (noun) A way of dividing a nucleotide sequence into consecutive groups of three bases for reading into codons.
- (noun) In artificial intelligence, a structure for representing knowledge about a typical object or situation as a set of named attributes.
- (noun) In stamp collecting, the decorated outer border around the central design of a stamp or a cancellation mark.
- (verb) To clean crushed ore by washing it over a sloping wooden table.
- (verb) To get moving, especially to go off or away.
- (verb) To make one's way to a place.
- (verb) To give strength or comfort to someone, reviving or sustaining them.
- (verb) To carry out or accomplish an act or task.
- (verb) To give rise to something, making it happen.
- (verb) To be of use or benefit.
- (verb) To suit or agree with something, going well together.
- (verb) To manage to carry out an attempt or task.
- (noun) The act of plotting or scheming, or a plan worked out in this way.
- (noun) In lattice theory, a complete lattice where taking a meet with any join, even an infinite one, gives the join of the separate meets.

## Origin

**Meanings 4–5, 7–8, 10–11, 20** — From Middle English framen (to construct, build, strengthen, or perform), from Old English framian/fremman (to profit, avail, advance). This traces back through Proto-Germanic *framjaną (to further, promote, perform) to a Proto-Indo-European root meaning front or forward, and is related to Danish fremme and Swedish främja.
**Meanings 1–3, 6, 9, 12–19, 21** — Middle English frame meant "profit, benefit" and "a structure built to a plan," and it came both from the verb and from Old Norse frami ("advantage, honor, efficiency"). Where the sense "framework or structure" came from is uncertain. It may be connected with a rare frame found in Anglo-Norman and Old French, itself of unclear origin, which possibly goes back to Frankish *hramu ("frame"), a relative of Dutch raam ("window frame").

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/frame (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).