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painting

American  
[peyn-ting] / ˈpeɪn tɪŋ /

noun

  1. a picture or design executed in paints.

  2. the act, art, or work of a person who paints.

  3. the works of art painted painted in a particular manner, place, or period.

    a book on Flemish painting.

  4. an instance of covering a surface with paint.

painting British  
/ ˈpeɪntɪŋ /

noun

  1. the art or process of applying paints to a surface such as canvas, to make a picture or other artistic composition

  2. a composition or picture made in this way

  3. the act of applying paint to a surface with a brush

"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

Etymology

Origin of painting

Middle English word dating back to 1175–1225; paint, -ing 1

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.

An introverted child, Ortiz grew up enjoying painting and handcrafts, as well as having an interest in engineering and how things are built.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 7, 2026

Zyw said the painting was then kept at a shop worker's house until it could be collected and brought to the gallery by an art carrier.

From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026

“There’s people who are like ‘Cudi painting now?

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 1, 2026

As seen in the exhibition, his Conté crayon drawings from these months informed his paintings, which pointedly eschewed any hint of the picturesque and also of Impressionist painting.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 28, 2026

He was assailed by the sight of a life-size oil painting of a man in uniform with enough facial hair to stuff a small cushion.

From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell

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.