mod•el
  Pronunciation: (mod'l), [key]    — n., adj., v., -eled, -el•ing -elled, -el•ling. 
  
 
—n. - a standard or example for imitation or comparison.  
- a representation, generally in miniature, to show the construction or appearance of something.  
- an image in clay, wax, or the like, to be reproduced in more durable material.  
- a person or thing that serves as a subject for an artist, sculptor, writer, etc.  
- a person whose profession is posing for artists or photographers.  
- a person employed to wear clothing or pose with a product for purposes of display and advertising.  
- a style or design of a particular product: His car is last year's model. 
- a pattern or mode of structure or formation.  
- a typical form or style.  
- a simplified representation of a system or phenomenon, as in the sciences or economics, with any hypotheses required to describe the system or explain the phenomenon, often mathematically.  
- an animal that is mimicked in form or color by another.  
 
—adj. - serving as an example or model: a model home open to prospective buyers. 
- worthy to serve as a model; exemplary: a model student. 
- being a small or miniature version of something: He enjoyed building model ships. 
 
—v.t. - to form or plan according to a model.  
- to give shape or form to; fashion.  
- to make a miniature model of.  
- to fashion in clay, wax, or the like.  
- to simulate (a process, concept, or the operation of a system), commonly with the aid of a computer.  
- to display to other persons or to prospective customers, esp. by wearing: to model dresses. 
- to use or include as an element in a larger construct: to model new data into the forecast. 
 
—v.i. - to make models.  
- to produce designs in some plastic material.  
- to assume a typical or natural appearance, as the parts of a drawing in progress.  
- to serve or be employed as a model.  
 
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.