compose
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
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Magotsi's eyes are filled with tears as he struggles to compose himself.
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026
He declined to say which AI tool helped him compose the Journal piece, which he wrote over the weekend while on vacation with his grandchildren.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
Fenton set Hopkins up with a keyboard loaded with samples of every instrument, and an internal switch was flipped: now the actor could compose for orchestra.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
Several times he had to stop singing to compose himself and, when the music stopped, he had to wipe tears from his eyes.
From BBC ● Aug. 2, 2026
I try to clear away the lump in my throat, to compose myself.
From "Love, Hate & Other Filters" by Samira Ahmed
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She quickly stops laughing and composes herself to tell us the story that inspired her to champion a law banning child marriage in Sierra Leone, which came into effect in 2024.
From BBC ● May 17, 2026
In most places in Europe, tax composes 50%-60% of the retail price of fuel, according to Rob Smith, S&P Energy’s director of global fuel retail.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 22, 2026
He specifically cites the way Pop Crave composes its posts, saying that there is specific psychology to the way its feed operates and rallies its massive follower base.
From Slate ● Sep. 1, 2024
“Jawole composes like an improviser, always leaving room for the spirit,” he said.
From New York Times ● Jun. 17, 2024
She takes her mark, composes herself, rocks back and forth a few times, then approaches the bar and flips right over it.
From "The Running Dream" by Wendelin Van Draanen
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Gabriel Kahane composed its musical homage to Ms. Nicks and made reference to one of her songs, “Landslide.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026
As a result, he says, "I think readers are coming to value very obviously personal writing, and maybe even writing that's messier, less structurally sound or composed or perfected, than they maybe once would've desired."
From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026
In recent years, AEW has pitched itself as an antidote to the WWE, but its roster is also almost entirely composed of independent contractors.
From Salon ● Oct. 2, 2026
In Kingsolver’s latest, a farm wife named Livia Cable has her quietly composed life blown open by a phone call from her days as a brilliant pianist.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
The eighty-eight players in the First Canadian Open may have composed a stronger roster than had been fielded at the United States Open a few weeks earlier.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
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At the moment, groundbreaking AI bots—when they aren’t actively plotting civilization’s demise—are composing elaborate symphonies and solving knotty, generations-old math problems.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 12, 2026
Duncan Sheik, who earned a Grammy nomination for his ubiquitous 1990s hit “Barely Breathing” and won a Tony Award for composing the music for “Spring Awakening,” died Thursday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
You're finally about to head off on a well-earned break, but there's one more task to tick off your to-do list: composing an out-of-office reply.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
He was speaking from the shaded courtyard garden of his Mayer am Pfarrplatz heuriger, down the steps from the room where Beethoven stayed while composing part of the Ninth Symphony.
From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026
The simple but meandering melodic lines of plainsong were to exert a considerable influence on his composing style as he matured.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
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Vocabulary lists containing compose
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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The SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 5
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List 5
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