Meaning & use
contouring
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“contouring” is a form of “contour”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
noununcountable
A makeup technique that uses darker and lighter shades to make the face look more sculpted or slimmer.
Grammar: Used without an or the in general statements: contouring takes practice.
Patterns
- contouring with something
She watched a video about contouring before her first photo shoot.
Contouring works best when the darker shade is blended well.
Many beginners overdo the contouring around the cheeks.
noununcountabletechnical
The act of drawing or following lines of equal height on a map, or shaping land or an object along its natural outline.
Grammar: Often used in surveying, farming and design: contouring of a hillside.
Patterns
- contouring of something
Contouring the slope with terraces helped stop the soil washing away.
The map was produced by laser contouring of the whole valley.
Careful contouring of the seat made the chair comfortable for long hours.
verbtransitive
Present participle of contour: shaping something or giving it a defined outline.
Grammar: Takes an object: she is contouring her cheekbones.
Patterns
- contouring something with something
He was contouring the farm's fields to follow the hillside.
She is contouring her jawline with a brush.
The designers are contouring the handle to fit a small hand.
Word forms
| base form | contour |
|---|---|
| third person singular | contours |
| past tense | contoured |
| -ing form | contouring |
Common combinations
- face contouring
- Face contouring can make a round face look more angular.
- contouring kit
- She bought a contouring kit with three shades.
- contouring and highlighting
- Contouring and highlighting are often done together in evening makeup.
- contouring brush
- A small contouring brush gives better control.
- contouring tutorial
- I followed a contouring tutorial online.
Synonyms and how they differ
- shaping
- Shaping is a broad word for giving something form, while contouring is more specific to adding shade or following an outline.
- sculpting
- Sculpting suggests a more dramatic change, in makeup or in physical form, than the lighter shading of contouring.
- outlining
- Outlining draws only the edge of something, while contouring also deals with the surface in between.
Word family
Commonly confused: contouring or counter?
contouring vs counter
Counter is a different word meaning to oppose or a surface; it has no link to shaping an outline, though the sounds are somewhat alike.
Practice
The makeup artist spent ten minutes on ____ to give the model sharper cheekbones.
Choose one answer.
Contouring is the technique of shading to sculpt the face. The other options are real words but have unrelated meanings.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “contouring”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.