easel

American  

[ee-zuhl] / ˈi zəl /

noun

• easels
  plural

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

Derived Forms

• easeled
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• easels
  plural

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

Explanation

If you're an artist, you probably use an easel, a stand that holds the canvas you're painting. If an art gallery displays your painting in the window on a solid gold easel, you’re making a splash in the art world! An easel is a tripod, with three long legs that connect together at the top and spread out wide at the floor, for stability. Artists use easels to hold the canvas or paper they’re working on — not just to display finished works of art. If you travel to a scenic overlook, you might see an artist painting the view onto a canvas, propped up on an easel. Easels can display other things, too, like letters, posters, or signs.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

easel easels

Opened in 1960, it was Renoir's last home before his death in 1919, and also features many things that once belonged to him, including his easel and wheelchair, as well as photographs and personal letters.

From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026

Provided with workbooks, easel pads and Sharpies, they arrived ready to game out responses to some of AI’s biggest risks—to jobs, the economy, political stability.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 13, 2026

The desk looks more like a small, table-top easel.

From Barron's ● May 29, 2026

Now, he’s relegated his studio space to a spot for recording Cameos, perched in front of a ring light rather than an easel.

From Salon ● Apr. 17, 2026

“Rest your easel on your belly. That’s it, amorcito. Now get close to the paper. With your head supported by these pillows, you won’t strain your neck.”

From "Lucky Broken Girl" by Ruth Behar

Upstairs at the studio I have a little painting area with easels for my grandkids, but my grandson, Jet, isn’t that into painting.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 20, 2026

While they still could, the Outdoor Painters of Minnesota set up their easels, capturing greens and blues in the ice-scape that perhaps only their artists’ eyes could discern.

From New York Times ● Feb. 2, 2024

Members come prepared with lightweight easels, dressed for the weather.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 15, 2023

It was easier the second time around: we already had easels to display the pictures, and we were able to import the invites from Mom's big day over to Dad's.

From Salon ● Aug. 26, 2023

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

From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin

Related Words

• tripod