wallpaper

American  

[wawl-pey-per] / ˈwɔlˌpeɪ pər /

noun

1. paper, usually with printed decorative patterns in color, for pasting on and covering the walls or ceilings of rooms, hallways, etc.

2. any fabric, foil, vinyl material, etc., used as a wall or ceiling covering.

3. Computers. a design or picture in the background of the primary display screen of a graphical user interface.

   Personalize your tablet by changing the wallpaper.

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verb (used with object)

1. to put wallpaper on (a wall, ceiling, etc.) or to furnish (a room, house, etc.) with wallpaper.

wallpaper British  

/ ˈwɔːlˌpeɪpə /

noun

1. paper usually printed or embossed with designs for pasting onto walls and ceilings

2. 1. something pleasant but bland which serves as an unobtrusive background

   2. ( as modifier )

      wallpaper music

3. computing a graphics file that can be displayed in certain applications behind or around the main dialogue boxes, working display areas, etc, for decoration

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verb

1. to cover (a surface) with wallpaper

Etymology

Origin of wallpaper

First recorded in 1820–30; wall + paper

Example Sentences

In the nine-minute short, a young cameraman falls into what appears to be an empty furniture store with an eerie atmosphere: a seemingly endless series of rooms covered in yellow wallpaper and buzzing fluorescent lights.

From Los Angeles Times • May 14, 2026

Peel-and-stick wallpaper and temporary bathroom tiles and kitchen backsplashes are other changes that you can easily undo when you move out without causing permanent damage to the property.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 30, 2026

As Deby had not long moved into her house, she had used a stepladder to strip wallpaper but that and a few foil blankets became the basis of her lunar lander.

From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026

Kennedy praised it as a place where kids can have access to organic food and learn trades like baking, building furniture, or producing wallpaper.

From Salon • Apr. 21, 2026

She was looking around the room, at the furniture and the wallpaper, at Father’s large, cluttered desk, at the framed pictures on the walls.

From "The Rock and the River" by Kekla Magoon