pencil
Americannoun
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pencils
plural
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a slender tube of wood, metal, plastic, etc., containing a core or strip of graphite, a solid coloring material, or the like, used for writing or drawing.
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a stick of cosmetic coloring material for use on the eyebrows, eyelids, etc.
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anything shaped or used like a pencil, as a stick of medicated material.
a styptic pencil.
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a narrow set of lines, light rays, or the like, diverging from or converging to a point.
a pencil of sunlight.
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a slender, pointed piece of a substance used for marking.
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style or skill in drawing or delineation.
He favored the late products of the artist's pencil.
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Mathematics. the collection of lines, planes, or surfaces passing through a given point or set of points and satisfying a given equation or condition.
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Archaic. an artist's paintbrush, especially for fine work.
verb (used with object)
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pencils,
present (3rd person singular)
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penciled,
past participle, past
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pencilled,
past participle, past (especially British)
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penciling,
present participle
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pencilling
present participle (especially British)
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to write, draw, mark, or color with, or as if with, a pencil.
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to use a pencil on.
verb phrase
noun
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a thin cylindrical instrument used for writing, drawing, etc, consisting of a rod of graphite or other marking substance, usually either encased in wood and sharpened or held in a mechanical metal device
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( as modifier )
a pencil drawing
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something similar in shape or function
a styptic pencil
an eyebrow pencil
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a narrow set of lines or rays, such as light rays, diverging from or converging to a point
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archaic an artist's fine paintbrush
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rare an artist's individual style or technique in drawing
verb
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to draw, colour, or write with a pencil
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to mark with a pencil
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to note, arrange, include, etc provisionally or tentatively
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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pencilsimple
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pencilssimple
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have penciledperfect
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have pencilledperfect
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has penciledperfect
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has pencilledperfect
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am pencilingprogressive
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am pencillingprogressive
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are pencilingprogressive
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are pencillingprogressive
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is pencilingprogressive
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is pencillingprogressive
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have been pencilingperfect progressive
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have been pencillingperfect progressive
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has been pencilingperfect progressive
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has been pencillingperfect progressive
Past
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penciledsimple
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pencilledsimple
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had penciledperfect
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had pencilledperfect
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was pencilingprogressive
-
was pencillingprogressive
-
were pencilingprogressive
-
were pencillingprogressive
-
had been pencilingperfect progressive
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had been pencillingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of pencil
1350–1400; Middle English pencel < Middle French pincel ≪ Latin pēnicillus painter's brush or pencil, diminutive of pēniculus little tail. See penis, -cule 1
Explanation
If you want to write something you can easily erase, write it with a pencil (instead of with a pen). When you color in the bubbles on a standardized test, a #2 pencil is the way to go. Unlike pens, which use ink, pencils have a pointed cylinder of graphite that makes marks on paper. Most pencils are wood with a thin center of graphite, although mechanical pencils are made of metal or plastic and look more like pens. You might describe an artwork as a pencil drawing, or ask if you can pencil some notes in the margins of your friend's copy of "Moby Dick." When you "pencil something in," you mark it tentatively on your calendar, knowing you might have to erase it later if your plans change.
Vocabulary lists containing pencil
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The yellow No. 2 Ticonderoga pencil was made in a sprawling factory downtown.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026
Researchers at Goethe University Frankfurt and TU Wien have now done that with a formula that can be worked out analytically, using what the scientists describe as essentially paper and pencil.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 30, 2026
With a few strokes of his pencil, Filippo Sorcinelli brought to life a flowing liturgical robe -- fitting for the man whose artistry and faith have cemented an international reputation for one-of-a-kind ecclesiastical attire.
From Barron's ● Aug. 22, 2026
But how would any of that pencil out with Dodger Stadium closed most of the year, and with gondola traffic chipping away at revenue from parking fees that start at a monstrous $40?
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 1, 2026
A large sheet of drawing paper and a sharpened pencil were easily found among her father’s art supplies.
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
Sharpen your No. 2 pencils for next week’s newsletter, because I’ll be leading Investing 101, Don’t Short Yourself style.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 18, 2026
Similarly, many school supplies are produced overseas, like pencils and crayons, which are predominantly imported from Brazil, China, Mexico and India.
From Salon ● Aug. 18, 2026
Participants are provided with an art pack full of supplies like acrylics, pencils, watercolours and pastels with the condition that they create up to four pieces of artwork.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
Managers of seven Southern California water agencies have been studying options for building the pipelines and pump stations to transport the water on land if the technology pencils out.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 2, 2026
For several minutes, the only sound in the classroom is pencils scratching against paper, and the ticking of the clock on the wall.
From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan
Tommy Edman was penciled into the leadoff spot and will play center field, while Alex Call will be the designated hitter and bat eighth.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026
Though they probably will have only four starting spots to fill in the postseason — and Yamamoto, Skubal, Snell and Glasnow can be penciled in when healthy — Ohtani’s build-up adds an interesting wrinkle.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
Starship’s next flight was penciled in for later this month, he said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
Its debt payments now eat about a quarter of the national budget, and the government just penciled in a 3% borrowing cost, up from 2%.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
Even though I did not have the schedule, I knew what time Papa had penciled in for bed.
From "Purple Hibiscus" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Goldman Sachs estimate is $474 billion in 2030 while Morgan Stanley has $330 billion pencilled in, according to forecasts shared with investors that the Wall Street Journal reported.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 15, 2026
Economists had pencilled in an interest cut after the rate of inflation dropped to 3% in January.
From BBC ● Mar. 18, 2026
Spurs also thought they had a £60m deal to sign Nottingham Forest's gifted midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White, with a medical tentatively pencilled in.
From BBC ● Feb. 11, 2026
But given the slowdown in inflation, analysts at Capital Economics said they had now "pencilled in rate cuts towards the end of the year".
From Barron's ● Feb. 5, 2026
On it was pencilled the words: “Serves you right.”
From "Animal Farm: A Fairy Story" by George Orwell
In June, the Fed’s “dot plot” forecast of interest rates showed a dramatic shift toward tightening, with nine officials penciling at least one rate hike this year and six penciling in more than one.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 18, 2026
Economists remain divided on the BOK’s policy path, with some still penciling in a rate cut in the first quarter of 2026 and others maintaining that the current easing cycle may have already ended.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 27, 2025
Fed policymakers had previously indicated in their September Summary of Economic Projections that they were penciling in rate cuts at both the October and December meetings.
From Barron's ● Oct. 29, 2025
In the meantime, below are 10 essential Latino performances we’ll be penciling into our schedule, listed in chronological order.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 7, 2025
All day one Saturday the girls gave each other curly permanent waves and plucked out their eyebrows, penciling a thin arc over each eye.
From "Ceremony:" by Leslie Marmon Silko
The lower consumer inflation figure for June gave policymakers enough "room to breathe" for now, but with further price rises expected Swonk was pencilling in two rate hikes for later this year.
From Barron's ● Jul. 29, 2026
Many experts are pencilling in sharper declines ahead, depending on how long the conflict lasts.
From BBC ● Apr. 6, 2026
And while full-year earnings growth estimates for S&P500 companies have sunk to zero, consensus forecasts are now pencilling in a rebound of almost 12% next year.
From Reuters ● Feb. 16, 2023
Anytime you get Rahm in California pencilling in a top 10 is just a given at this point.
From Golf Digest ● Feb. 12, 2020
At each prospect the "Wizard" loosened a small handful of gravel, examined it carefully and put it in a small buckskin bag, pencilling each bag in order.
From The Boy With the U.S. Miners by Francis Rolt-Wheeler
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
