[dis.play] vb [ME, fr. AF despleer, desploier, lit., to unfold--more at deploy] vt (14c) 1 a: to put or spread before the view "~ the flag" b: to make evident "~ed great skill" c: to exhibit ostentatiously "liked to ~ his erudition"
2. obs: descry ~ vi 1 obs: show off
2: to make a breeding display "penguins ~ed and copulated" syn see show -- dis.play.able adj
[2]display n, often attrib (1665) 1 a (1): a setting or presentation of something in open view "a fireworks ~" (2): a clear sign or evidence: exhibition "a ~ of courage" b: ostentatious show c: type, composition, or printing designed to catch the eye d: an eye-catching arrangement by which something is exhibited e: an electronic device (as a cathode-ray tube) that temporarily presents information in visual form; also: the visual information
2: a pattern of behavior exhibited esp. by male birds in the breeding season