easel

American  

[ee-zuhl] / ˈi zəl /

noun

1. a stand or frame for supporting or displaying at an angle an artist's canvas, a blackboard, a china plate, etc.

2. Also called masking frame.  Photography. a frame, often with adjustable masks, used to hold photographic paper flat and control borders when printing enlargements.

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easel British  

/ ˈiːzəl /

noun

1. a frame, usually in the form of an upright tripod, used for supporting or displaying an artist's canvas, blackboard, etc

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Other Word Forms

• easeled adjective

Etymology

Origin of easel

1625–35; < Dutch ezel ass, easel (cognate with German Esel, Old English esel ass) < Vulgar Latin *asilus, for Latin asellus, diminutive of asinus ass ¹

Example Sentences

Beowulf had knitted a carrying case with a strap, perfect for those times when one gets the urge to paint en plein air and needs to carry one’s portable easel, paints, and brushes outdoors.

From Literature

The frameless paintings sat in a corner of the room on easels, reminiscent of Ross’ humble TV studio.

From Los Angeles Times

Lemnitzer set up thirty-eight charts on easels and brought the president up to speed.

From Literature

A picture of Salim Iskef, one of the shooting's victims, sat on an easel.

From BBC

Santa Barbara’s Bellosguardo Estate include an art studio full of paintings by and of heiress Huguette Clark, who is seen in the work on the easel.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• tripod