Phrase guide

tableau vivant

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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No pronunciation record was provided for this word.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A tableau (group scene resembling a painting).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: art, arts

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

a group of people attractively arranged (as if in a painting)

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: tableau

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: arrangement

History

Etymology

Borrowed from French tableau vivant (literally “living picture”).