frontispiece

English

Etymology

From Middle French frontispice, from Latin frontispicium, from frōns (“forehead”) + specere (“look at”). Spelling altered due to folk etymology, influenced by piece.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfɹʌn.tɪˌspiːs/

Noun

frontispiece (plural frontispieces)

1. (publishing) An illustration that is on the page before the title page of a book, a section of one, or a magazine.
2. (archaic, publishing) The title page of a book.
3. (architecture) A façade, especially an ornamental one.
4. (architecture) A small ornamental pediment, especially at the top of a window or door.

Translations

publishing: illustration

• Catalan: frontispici (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 卷首插画

• Czech: frontispis m
• Dutch: frontispice (nl), frontispies (nl)
• Finnish: frontespiisi (fi), nimiönliite, esiökuva
• French: frontispice (fr) m
• German: Frontispiz (de) n
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Ido: frontispico (io)
• Italian: frontespizio (it) m
• Polish: frontyspis (pl)
• Portuguese: frontispício (pt) m
• Romanian: frontispiciu (ro)
• Russian: фронти́спис (ru) m (frontíspis), фронтиспи́с (ru) m (frontispís)
• Spanish: frontispicio (es) m
• Swedish: frontespis (sv) c, vinjettbild c, vinjettplansch c

publishing: title page — see title page

façade

• Catalan: frontispici (ca) m
• Finnish: julkisivu (fi), paraatipuoli
• Ido: frontispico (io)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Russian: фронто́н (ru) m (frontón), фронти́спис (ru) m (frontíspis), фронтиспи́с (ru) m (frontispís), фаса́д (ru) m (fasád)
• Swedish: frontespis (sv) c

small ornamental pediment

• Swedish: frontespis (sv) c
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

Verb

1. (transitive, rare) To supply with a frontispiece.

   The novel was frontispieced with a portrait of the author.

References

• Michael Quinion (2004) “Frontispiece”, in Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds: Ingenious Tales of Words and Their Origins, Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Books in association with Penguin Books, →ISBN.