compose
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
to write a piece of music, a poem, or a formal letter.
to create or fashion a literary or musical work through intellectual effort.
Simple“He spent the entire summer in a small cabin to compose his first symphony.”
In context“The young prodigy began to compose intricate sonatas long before he had mastered the technical nuances of music theory.”
- 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
to be the parts that form something larger.
to constitute or make up the constituent parts of a whole.
Simple“Water is composed of hydrogen and oxygen.”
In context“The committee is composed of representatives from every department to ensure that all voices are heard during the restructuring process.”
UsageOften used in the passive voice as 'be composed of'.
PitfallThe team is composed by ten players. The team is composed of ten players.When using the passive form to describe parts, use the preposition 'of'.
Synonyms - 03 C1 Advanced
to make yourself feel calm and controlled, especially after being upset.
to settle or calm one's mind or features; to free from agitation.
Simple“She took a deep breath to compose herself before walking onto the stage.”
In context“He paused at the threshold for a moment to compose his features, determined not to let his disappointment show to the waiting journalists.”
UsageFrequently used reflexively with 'myself', 'herself', etc.
- 04 B2 Upper Intermediate
to arrange the different parts of a photograph or painting in a pleasing way.
to arrange the visual elements of a work of art or photography according to aesthetic principles.
Simple“The photographer took his time to compose the shot so the mountains were perfectly framed.”
In context“By learning how to compose a scene effectively, a painter can guide the viewer's eye toward the most important details of the narrative.”
- 05 C2 Proficiency
to arrange letters and words into lines so they can be printed.
to set type or arrange characters in a composing stick for the purpose of printing.
Simple“In the old days, workers had to compose every page by hand using metal letters.”
In context“The apprentice spent years learning how to compose complex layouts on a traditional printing press before the industry shifted to digital methods.”
Teacher's tipThis sense is mostly historical in physical printing but survives in digital typesetting software contexts.
Synonymstypeset
compose vs comprise — Comprise describes the whole containing the parts, while compose describes the parts forming the whole.
Usage compose of · mainly compose
“Jean-Jacques Rousseau claimed that he could compose only while walking.”
“Harp is known to compose his posts on Truth Social.”
From Middle English composen, from Old French composer (“to compose, compound, adjust, settle”), from com- + poser, as an adaptation of Latin componere (“to put together, compose”), from com- (“together”) + ponere (“to put, place”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.