E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
Feature
means the “make.” Spenser speaks of God’s “secret understanding of our feature”—i.e. make or structure. It now means that part which is most conspicuous or important. Thus we speak of the chief feature of a painting, a garden, a book, etc., etc. (Norman, faiture; Latin, factura.)
