facade meaning: definition, etymology and quotations

facade

noun

/fəˈsɑ(ː)d/ · /fəˈseɪd/

Etymology Borrowed from French façade, from Italian facciata, a derivation of faccia (“front”), from Latin faciēs (“face”); compare face.

Architecture The face of a building, especially the front view or elevation.

In Egypt the façades of their rock-cut tombs were[…]ornamented so simply and unobtrusively as rather to belie than to announce their internal magnificence.1865, James Fergusson, A History of Architecture in All Countries:
Like so many of the finest churches, [the cathedral of Siena] was furnished with a plain substantial front wall, intended to serve as the backing and support of an ornamental façade.1880, Charles Eliot Norton, Historical Studies of Church-Building in the Middle Ages:

2 more examples

The house of Ruthven was a small but ultra-modern limestone affair, between Madison and Fifth ;[…]. As a matter of fact its narrow ornate façade presented not a single quiet space that the eyes might rest on after a tiring attempt to follow and codify the arabesques, foliations, and intricate vermiculations of what some disrespectfully dubbed as “near-aissance.”1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, chapter V, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC:
Eight or so gunmen stood shoulder to shoulder in the gray-white trail before the barn, firing into the saloon's burning, bullet-pocked facade.2005, Peter Brandvold, “Ghost Colts”, in Robert J. Randisi, editor, Lone Star Law, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN, page 179:

Broadly The face or front (most visible side) of any other thing, such as the prospect of an organ.

Figuratively A deceptive or insincere outward appearance.

Computing, Engineering, Mathematics, Natural sciences, Physical sciences, Programming, Sciences An object serving as a simplified interface to a larger body of code, as in the facade pattern.

Facades are widely used for tasks like simplifying complex APIs.2017, Evan Burchard, Refactoring JavaScript: Turning Bad Code Into Good Code, O'Reilly Media, →ISBN, page 311:

Derived terms: counterfacade, facadal, facadectomy, facaded, facade pattern, facading, facadism

facade

verb

Etymology Borrowed from French façade, from Italian facciata, a derivation of faccia (“front”), from Latin faciēs (“face”); compare face.

Figuratively, Rare To cover or disguise an outward appearance.

Una was not happy in that small and self-immured company, already bound together by its big year on Broadway. But she façaded her unrest with a determination to improve her mind.1943, Arthur Stringer, Star in a Mist, A Novel, page 180:
The parks observed at the entrance, with their fountains and benches and circular drives, were no "Potemkin's villages" facading the lanscape for official visits.1960, Press and Information Office, Embassy of the Republic of Viet-Nam, “The Agrovilles: A New Prospect In Viet Nam”, in News from Viet-Nam, volume 6, number 7, page 5:

4 more examples

In fantasy he facades a happy childhood, but in reality it was extremely lonely, and it would appear that he had probably been breast fed through a pair of falsies.1980, LA Law Library, California, Court of Appeal (1st Appellate District), Records and Briefs, 2CRIM40517, Petition for Writ, page 6:
I don't equate class clown with confidence. Most times, a person acting out like this (clowining) displays the opposite - someone who is insecure enough to be themself so they facade their true feelings via jokes, put downs, laughter, and plain old attention getting the wrong way.2005 October 25, JimSummers, “Issue of confidence? Too simple”, in alt.support.shyness (Usenet):
In his speech at Dacca, Curzon put forward his notorious plan of 'bifurcating Bengal' (as he preferred to call it), facading the communal overtones with the mask of good governance.2020, Jaydip Sarkar, Rupayan Mukherjee (editors), Partition Literature and Cinema, A Critical Introduction:
Nancy is not that tired and exhausted, yet she facades her fatigue to escape from this silly revision of the concepts.2021, Abhi, The BAG-G-AGE: