acrylic

[uh-kril-ik]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR acrylic ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

of or derived from acrylic acid.

noun

acrylic fiber.

acrylic resin.

a paint, prepared especially for artists, in which an acrylic resin serves as a vehicle.

a painting done with this type of paint: She sold several acrylics during the show.

Origin of acrylic

First recorded in 1855–60; acr(olein) + -yl + -ic

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for acrylic

Contemporary Examples of acrylic

The coat (available in both denim and acrylic) was reportedly created in 2004, though it is still awaiting patent.
From the Anti-Rape Bra to Chastity Belts: How Women Use Clothing for Protection
Soraya Roberts
June 5, 2013
Waves crashed against the $9 million, 26-foot-high acrylic pavilion that encases the 90-year-old carousel.
Jane’s Carousel Survives A Very Close Call With Hurricane Sandy
Matthew DeLuca
November 1, 2012
A hard court, like the ones at the U.S. Open, consists of a thin film of acrylic over an asphalt base.
The U.S. Open’s Watergate
Allen St. John
September 9, 2011

Historical Examples of acrylic

His acrylic radio collar was also cracked on the right side in three places.
An Experimental Translocation of the Eastern Timber Wolf
Thomas F. Weise
The transmitter, batteries, and antenna were molded into a collar of acrylic weighing 11 ounces (Mech et al. 1965).
Ecological Studies of the Timber Wolf in Northeastern Minnesota
L. David Mech
It forms an addition product with acrylic ester, which on heating loses nitrogen and leaves trimethylene dicarboxylic ester.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 4
Various

British Dictionary definitions for acrylic

acrylic

adjective

of, derived from, or concerned with acrylic acid

noun

short for acrylic fibre, acrylic resin

a paint or colour containing acrylic resin

Word Origin for acrylic

C20: from acrolein + -yl + -ic

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for acrylic

adj.

1855, "of or containing acryl," name of a radical from acrolein (1843), the name of a liquid in onions and garlic that makes eyes tear, from Latin acer "sharp" (see acrid) + olere "to smell" (see odor) + -in (see -ine (2)). With adjectival suffix + -ic. Modern senses often short for acrylic fiber, acrylic resin, etc.