adj

Baroque

buh-ROK

adj

Extravagantly ornate and detailed, especially in art, architecture, or music.

"The cathedral's baroque interior was covered in gold leaf and elaborate carvings."

"Critics called the script overly baroque, weighed down with needless subplots."

name

The European artistic period (roughly 1600-1750) known for its dramatic, richly decorated style.

"Bach and Vivaldi are among the best-known composers of the Baroque."

How to Use Baroque

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishHeavily decorated and dramatic — first a European art era, now also used loosely for anything overly ornate or complicated.

Memory tip

Capitalize it (Baroque) when naming the historical art/music period; lowercase (baroque) when just describing something as overly elaborate.

Trace the full origin ↓

Common pairings

baroque architecture baroque music a baroque plot

Word Forms

more Baroque comparative, baroquer comparative, baroques plural, most Baroque superlative, baroquest superlative

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Fill the Gap

Can you complete this real example?

The cathedral's _____ interior was covered in gold leaf and elaborate carvings.

Etymology

From French baroque, originally describing an irregularly shaped pearl, likely from Portuguese barroco. Over time it came to describe the ornate, dramatic art style of the 1600s and 1700s, and eventually anything excessively elaborate.

Rhymes for Baroque

rue due sue cue hue Que yue Vue Xue blue true flue

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