"Meaning is present when the design conveys a message." [Wong, Wucius. Principals of Two-Dimensional Design. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, 1972.]
Meaningful Pattern . . . . Learning and past experience greatly affect perceptual organization. One can have an immediate recognition of letters and not be able to read handwriting. Camouflage patterns break up figure-ground organization. If you had not seen a similar camouflaged animal in a scene, for example, would you recognize it? In a way we are all detectives, seeking patterns in what we see. In this sense a ^meaningful pattern represents a perceptual hypothesis, or guess held until the evidence contradicts it. The active nature of organizing perceptions is perhaps most apparent for ambiguous stimuli (patterns allowing more than one interpretation). If you look at a cloud, you may discover dozens of ways to organize its contours into fanciful shapes and scenes. Even clearly defined stimuli may permit more than one interpretation. In some instances, a stimulus may offer such conflicting information that perceptual organization becomes impossible . . . . [Coon, Dennis. Introduction to Psychology, Exploration and Application. St. Paul: West Publishing Company, 1989.]
R E F E R E N C E S
Meaning n. 1. that which is intended to be, or actually is, expressed or indicated; signification; import. 2. the end, purpose, or significance of something: What is the meaning of life? -adj. 3. intentioned [usually used in combination]: She's a well-meaning person. 4. full of significance; expressive: a meaning look. [ME (n.)]
-Syn. 1. tenor, gist, drift, trend. Meaning, Purport, Sense, Significance denote that which is expressed or indicated by something. Meaning is the general word denoting that which is intended to be or actually is expressed or indicated: the meaning of a word. Purport is mainly limited to the meaning of a formal document, speech, important conversation, etc., and refers to the gist of something fairly complicated: the purport of his letter to the editor. Sense may be used to denote one particular meaning of a word or phrase: The word is frequently used in this sense. Sense may also be used loosely to refer to intelligible meaning: There's no sense in what he says. Significance refers particularly to a meaning that is implied rather than expressed: the significance of her glance; or to a meaning the importance of which may not be easy to perceive immediately: The real significance of his words was not grasped at the time.
Meaningful adj . full of meaning; significant.
Meaningless adj. without meaning, significance, or value; purposeless.
[Urdang, Laurence, ed. Random House Dictionary of The English Language. New York: Random House, 1968.]
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