The Collaborative International Dictionary
Mosaic \Mo*sa"ic\, n. [F. mosa["i]que; cf. Pr. mozaic, musec, Sp. & Pg. mosaico, It. mosaico, musaico, LGr. ?, ?, L. musivum; all fr. Gr. ? belonging to the Muses. See Muse the goddess.]
(Fine Arts) A surface decoration made by inlaying in patterns small pieces of variously colored glass, stone, or other material; -- called also mosaic work.
A picture or design made in mosaic; an article decorated in mosaic.
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Something resembling a mosaic[1]; something made up of different pieces, fitted together by design to form a unified composition.
aerial mosaic An aerial photograph of a large area, made by carefully fitting together aerial photographs of smaller areas so that the edges match in location, and the whole provides a continuous image of the larger area. Called also
mosaic map and photomosaic.
mosaic virus A type of plant virus that causes green and yellow mottling of leaves of a plant. A much-studied type is the tobacco mosaic virus, affecting the tobacco plant.
Usage examples of "aerial mosaic".
A blown-up aerial mosaic of the Castle of Death and the surrounding country was produced from a riling cabinet and laid out on the desk.
The PanAsian lieutenant commanding it consulted a recently constructed aerial mosaic map and indicated to the pilot that he was to hover.