mural

American  

[myoor-uhl] / ˈmjʊər əl /

noun

• murals
  plural

1. a large picture painted or affixed directly on a wall or ceiling.

2. a greatly enlarged photograph attached directly to a wall.

3. a wallpaper pattern representing a landscape or the like, often with very widely spaced repeats so as to produce the effect of a mural painting on a wall of average size; a trompe l'oeil.

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adjective

1. of, relating to, or resembling a wall.

2. executed on or affixed to a wall.

   mural inscriptions.

3. pertaining to any of several astronomical instruments that were affixed to a wall aligned on the plane of a meridian, and were formerly used to measure the altitude of celestial bodies.

   a mural quadrant; a mural circle.

mural British  

/ ˈmjʊərəl /

noun

1. a large painting or picture on a wall

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adjective

1. of or relating to a wall

mural Cultural  

1. A painting, usually large, made directly on a wall.

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Discover More

The Mexican artist Diego Rivera was noted for his production of murals.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• muralist
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• murals
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of mural

1400–50; late Middle English < Latin mūrālis, equivalent to mūr ( us ) wall + -ālis -al ¹

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Explanation

A mural is a large-scale painting usually done on a wall. Diego Rivera, the Mexican muralist, is famous for the plaster murals he painted on the walls at Rockefeller Center in the 1930s. Famous murals include the wall designs in the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican in Rome, and the Coit Tower murals in San Francisco. Many murals were created during the Renaissance, and again during the New Deal. They are also common features of urban settings — painted on the outsides of buildings and on playground walls.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

mural murals

The first mural in Anthony Pittman’s “Los Angelitos” project, outside Patria Coffee Roasters, is a twist on an early painting of California from 1832.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026

In the southern port city of Ashdod, the artist behind the mural of Abraham and Szor unleashed a torrent of insults at the filmmakers, who are currently abroad.

From Barron's ● Sep. 17, 2026

On a street in southern Israel, a graffiti artist paints a mural depicting the filmmakers behind the award-winning documentary "NAZA".

From Barron's ● Sep. 17, 2026

The ceiling mural is trimmed in baby pink, which builds upon pink details in paintings on surrounding walls.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026

In one window, two pilgrims in thick wool breeches and doublets pointed at Plymouth rock while their fellow voyagers looked on from ships in the mural.

From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead

The Whitney’s presentation—without soothsayers, murals or drapes—is decidedly more neutral.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026

Living alone in Los Angeles for the first time, Jordan had visions of eclectic murals to match her vintage furniture and art collection.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026

It also contains a murals gallery, and galleries devoted to specific artists including Norman Rockwell, N.C.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026

A giant guitar sculpture dominates the central square, guitar murals adorn walls and pavements and even the rubbish bins are shaped like guitars.

From Barron's ● Aug. 31, 2026

And so here she was, on the second day of summer break, adding a few more scales along a pair of dragon wings and worrying about crying murals.

From "Shadowshaper" by Daniel José Older

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Related Words

• art
• canvas
• composition
• depiction
• landscape
• oil painting
• picture
• portrait
• sketch

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