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underpainting

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underpainting¹

Where it comes from

From under- + painting.

noun underpaintings

  1. countable, uncountable An initial layer of paint, often monochromatic, applied to a ground as a base for subsequent layers. He would start with a stenciled acrylic underpainting and finish by making marks with the chalk and charcoal shells.
  2. countable, uncountable A painting that the artist later painted over to create the final work. At first they wouldn't believe him, but he gave them proof. X-ray the Adulteress, he told them, and you will find an underpainting. They did and found the underpainting van Meegeren had described.

underpainting²

Where it comes from

From underpaint + -ing.

verb

  1. gerund, participle, present present participle and gerund of underpaint

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Cite this
MLA

"underpainting." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/underpainting. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

underpainting. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/underpainting

Chicago

"underpainting." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/underpainting.

BibTeX
@misc{underpainting_2026,
  title = {underpainting},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/underpainting},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}