[av.a.tar] n [Skt avatara descent, fr. avatarati he descends, fr. ava- away + tarati he crosses over--more at ukase, through] (1784) 1: the incarnation of a Hindu deity (as Vishnu)
2. a: an incarnation in human form b: an embodiment (as of a concept or philosophy) often in a person
3: a variant phase or version of a continuing basic entity