Device
Device noun - Any ornamental pattern or design (as in embroidery).
Figure
Figure noun - A unit of decoration that is repeated all over something (as a fabric).
Usage example: upholstered the chair with a fabric embossed with figures of fleur-de-lis
Device is a synonym for figure in thing topic. You can use "Device" instead a noun "Figure", if it concerns topics such as part, object, design, shape.
How words are described
Both words in one sentence
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Kat, the one person who seems able to figure out how the robots work, made an anti-gravity device from Noodle Implements as part of a science fair project.
Source: Reed Richards Is Useless -
Richard uses this as an insulting mnemonic device to help Tommy Boy remember the figure 1.5%.
Source: 90% of Your Brain -
They're used as a plot device to help the human castaway protagonists figure out all the other technology said aliens left behind on the planet they're stranded on.
Source: Neural Implanting
Cite this Source
Figure and Device. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/device/figure
Device & Figure. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/device/figure>.
Figure or Device. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/device/figure.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "device" and "figure" have occurred on timeline