lithograph
Americannoun
verb (used with object)
noun
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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lithographsimple
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lithographssimple
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have lithographedperfect
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has lithographedperfect
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am lithographingprogressive
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are lithographingprogressive
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is lithographingprogressive
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have been lithographingperfect progressive
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has been lithographingperfect progressive
Past
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lithographedsimple
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had lithographedperfect
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was lithographingprogressive
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were lithographingprogressive
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had been lithographingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of lithograph
First recorded in 1815–25; back formation from lithography
Compare meaning
How does lithograph compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
A lithograph is a print that's made using a stone or metal plate. Lithographs are etched into the plate using a chemical reaction. To make a lithograph, an artist draws a design or on the stone plate with a waxy crayon or oil-based ink. After treating the plate with several layers of material, including rosin, talc, and an acidic solution, the lithographer applies ink with a roller. The oily ink only sticks to the waxy image, not the area around it; the resulting lithograph is a crisp reverse image on paper. The Greek roots of lithograph mean "stone" and "to draw."
Vocabulary lists containing lithograph
Visual Arts - High School
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Art History
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Visual Arts - Middle School
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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.
The cover featured a lithograph by Odilon Redon of an enormous eye in the shape of a hot-air balloon, a piece that apparently was inspired by Poe.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 5, 2026
The Dancer features similar cut out shapes, although it is a lithograph print.
From BBC • Nov. 28, 2025
Ruscha’s life-spanning retrospective currently at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art is called “Now Then,” evoking his black-and-white lithograph of the phrase “That was then, this is now” lit up against dark clouds.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 7, 2024
But here you’ll find an 1895 lithograph of “The Scream” — the image inspired, he said, by hearing “the scream of nature.”
From New York Times • Jul. 27, 2023
A Currier & Ives lithograph of the death of President Abraham Lincoln.
From "Lincoln's Last Days: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever" by Bill O'Reilly
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.
