sten·cil

(stĕn′səl)

1. A sheet, as of plastic or cardboard, in which a desired lettering or design has been cut so that ink or paint applied to the sheet will reproduce the pattern on the surface beneath.

2. The lettering or design produced with such a sheet.

3. The process of printing with such a sheet.

tr.v. sten·ciled, sten·cil·ing, sten·cils or sten·cilled or sten·cil·ling

1. To mark with a stencil.

2. To produce by stencil.

[From Middle English stencelled, adorned brightly, from Old French estenceler, to adorn brightly, from estencele, spark, from Vulgar Latin *stincilla, alteration of Latin scintilla, spark.]

sten′cil·er n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

stenciling

1. A method of producing images or letters from sheets of cardboard, metal, or other materials from which images or letters have been cut away.

2. A method of transfering a design by painting through shapes cut in a thin sheet of metal, paper or similar material. Stencils can be used for tiny designs, such as initials or small sunflower motifs, or for giant designs suitable for decorating an entire room.

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References in periodicals archive

The book begins with an introduction that is focused on the history of stenciling, which reaches back to prehistoric caves, ancient Asian art, and indigenous crafts.

Stencil Type

This is much more than the typical stencil book for home decor: it provides 18 projects designed to help artists view stenciling in a different light.

North Light Books

Having never studied art, it was only when the Christ Fleming discovered a treasured stenciling kit once owned by his grandfather, Robert, that his talent flourished.

GRANDSON DISCOVERS HE'S CUT OUT FOR A FUTURE IN STENCILING

Many cities have regulations regarding the placement of sidewalk ads, but most markets don't define water stenciling as graffiti.

Street graffiti turns green

Stenciling is often done in conjunction with a faux finish for decorative effect.

Interior decor

To incorporate direct-part marking into the production line, a metalcasting facility will need the serialized stencils, which can either be purchased or made in-house with a stenciling machine, a hot-melt glue gun (hand-held or robotized), a zebra printer to print the outside paper labels, a network server for data collection, and a scanner or imager to read the data codes.

Permanent bar codes take guesswork out of part tracing

I suggest always stenciling the rating on at least two places on each jack stand.

Watch the weight!

As a means of coding and identifying these fabricated members, American Bridge used a traditional industry method of hand stenciling (stamping) to mark every primary and secondary member.

Portable, programmable marker replaces costly hand-stamping: parts marking by manual stamping has been a tradition and virtual requirement in bridge fabrication, but a new marking technology is changing operations and improving the bottom line

Ask students to recall what they know about the meaning of the new word or any experiences they may have had with stenciling. Some responses may be: "My mother uses something like that to put designs on pillows," or "We used stencils to put Christmas patterns on our windows with spray snow."

Stencils made simple

The Stocksfield entrepreneur will teach the latest stenciling ideas at the International Stencil Conference in San Diego.

Stencil designer takes ideas stateside

Stenciling is a traditional decorative technique that perfectly complements a Craftsman-style room.

Simple stenciling: beautiful walls from an ancient art

Stencils must be cleaned to maintain the stencil's printing properties and the stenciling equipment and to achieve satisfactory solder paste deposition.

Concerned about stencil life? Use care--don't abrade, bend, staple, twist, mishandle or overheat the stencil!