aquarelle

American  

[ak-wuh-rel, ah-kwuh-, a-kwa-rel] / ˌæk wəˈrɛl, ˌɑ kwə-, a kwaˈrɛl /

noun

plural

aquarelles

1. a watercolor.

2. Printing. a printed picture that has been colored manually by applying watercolor through stencils, each color requiring a different stencil.

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aquarelle British  

/ ˌækwəˈrɛl /

noun

1. a method of watercolour painting in transparent washes

2. a painting done in this way

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Other Word Forms

• aquarellist
  noun

Etymology

Origin of aquarelle

1865–70; < French < Italian acquarella (now obsolete) watercolor, equivalent to Latin aquār ( ius ) of water ( see aquarium) + Italian -ella -elle

Example Sentences

This collection’s pink and white aquarelle palette evoked the vibrant style of the Ballets Russes as envisioned by Léon Bakst and Sergei Diaghilev.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 23, 2024

For it's a blue-shift world we occupy, Dilemma-prone, clear-cut solutions rare, And clashing viewpoints often held at bay By hues, just short of violet, that eschew Sharp contrasts for an azure aquarelle.

From Scientific American • Sep. 7, 2022

Gustave Doré had made some very clever caricatures of some events which he had drawn beautifully and touched off with aquarelle, as he alone could do it.

From In the Courts of Memory, 1858 1875; from Contemporary Letters by Hegermann-Lindencrone, L. de (Lillie de)

It gives a shallow colour; and even those who love their sky streaked and tumbled into the chaos of smoke should not be allowed to defend the aquarelle that colours their buildings.

From London Impressions Etchings and Pictures in Photogravure by Meynell, Alice Christiana Thompson

It gives one the idea of some great aquarelle unfinished,—abandoned before tones were deepened and details brought out.

From Two Years in the French West Indies by Hearn, Lafcadio