Dictionary.com

etching

[ ech-ing ]
/ ˈɛtʃ ɪŋ /
Save This Word!

noun
the act or process of making designs or pictures on a metal plate, glass, etc., by the corrosive action of an acid instead of by a burin.
an impression, as on paper, taken from an etched plate.
the design so produced.
a metal plate bearing such a design.
QUIZ
CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?
There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?
Question 1 of 7
Which sentence is correct?

Origin of etching

First recorded in 1625–35; etch + -ing1
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use etching in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for etching

etching
/ (ˈɛtʃɪŋ) /

noun
the art, act, or process of preparing etched surfaces or of printing designs from them
an etched plate
an impression made from an etched plate
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

Cultural definitions for etching

etching

An artistic print made from a plate on which the artist has etched a design with acid. (Compare engraving.)

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
FEEDBACK