art consisting of a design made of small pieces of colored stone or glass
"The ancient floor was covered in a stunning mosaic depicting scenes from Greek mythology, crafted entirely from tiny pieces of colorful glass and stone."
viral disease in solanaceous plants (tomatoes, potatoes, tobacco) resulting in mottling and often shriveling of the leaves
"The tomato crop suffered a devastating loss after a severe mosaic virus caused widespread leaf mottling and shriveling."
a freeware browser
"Users often choose Mosaic as their freeware browser because it is lightweight and easy to install on older systems."
a pattern resembling a mosaic
"The artist created a stained-glass window with intricate colors forming a pattern resembling a mosaic."
transducer formed by the light-sensitive surface on a television camera tube
"The old television studio used a mosaic as the transducer in its camera tube to capture images through the light-sensitive surface."
arrangement of aerial photographs forming a composite picture
"The survey team created a detailed map by assembling a mosaic from thousands of overlapping aerial photographs."
A piece of artwork created by placing colored squares (usually tiles) in a pattern so as to create a picture.
"The ancient floor features a stunning mosaic depicting birds and flowers made from small, colored glass squares."
In plain English: A mosaic is an artwork made by gluing many small pieces of colored glass, stone, or tile together to form a picture.
"The bathroom floor is covered in a colorful mosaic made of small tiles."
Usage: Use the noun form when referring to an image made from small, colored pieces like tile or glass arranged into a design. Avoid confusing this artistic medium with "mosaic" used in biology to describe tissues containing genetically different cells.
Containing cells of varying genetic constitution.
"The ancient text was identified as a mosaic of laws traditionally attributed to Moses."
Pertaining to Moses, or the writings and traditions attributed to him.
In plain English: Mosaic describes something made by putting together many small pieces to form a larger picture or design.
"The mosaic floor was made of small, colorful tiles arranged in complex patterns."
The word "mosaic" entered English via Middle French and Italian from a Late Latin term meaning an artwork made with small pieces. Its ultimate origin is Ancient Greek, where it originally referred to a shrine dedicated to the Muses rather than a decorative art form.