paint

Etymology

From Middle English peynten, from Old French peintier, paincter, itself from paint, the past participle of paindre, from Latin pingō (“to paint”) (perfect passive participle pictus). Displaced native Old English tēafor (“paint”) and *tīefran (“to paint”).

noun

1. A substance that is applied as a liquid or paste, and dries into a solid coating that protects or adds color/colour to an object or surface to which it has been applied.
2. (in the plural) A set of containers or blocks of paint of different colors/colours, used for painting pictures.
   René went back into the kitchen and put a pot of coffee on, got out his paints and started on a new painting. He felt inspired. 2007, Jesse Guthrie, Catherine's Addiction, page 116
3. (basketball, slang) The free-throw lane, construed with the.
   The Nimrods are strong on the outside, but not very good in the paint.
   Early on it was the Bulldogs who were clearly the aggressors, playing hard in the paint and getting baskets with muscle more than with their shooting prowess. December 12, 2013, “JV Dogs suffer first loss, 47-41”, in Martinez (California) News-Gazette
   Isaiah Thomas is very clever, very crafty getting to the paint and finishing in the paint. April 20, 2016, “Hawks not giving Celtics anything in the paint”, in Comcast SportsNet New England
   In Game 3, they re-focused on protecting the paint and transition defense. The Cavs scored 106 points in the paint in the first two games and just 20 in Game 3. May 22, 2016, “Renewed defensive strategy has Raptors alive in conference finals”, in USA TODAY
4. (uncountable, paintball, slang) Paintballs.
   I am running low on paint for my marker.
5. (poker, slang) A face card (king, queen, or jack).
6. (computing, attributive) Graphics drawn using an input device, not scanned or generated.
   It combines traditional paint capabilities with photograph enhancement features. 1993, Emil Ihrig, CorelDRAW! 4 made easy
   Computer paint software operates similarly but adds features that are delightfully familiar and useful to artists trained in traditional graphics materials. 1998, Kit Laybourne, The animation book: a complete guide to animated filmmaking
   If using a paint package, you must specify the color before you draw the line or shape. 2001, Maureen Sprankle, Problem Solving for Information Processing
7. (uncountable) Makeup.
   They were as plain and homely as a table-top dancer when the rains had wiped the paint and powder from her face. 2012, Caleb Pirtle, Shelly Marshall, Other Voices, Other Towns: The Traveler's Story
8. (uncountable, slang) Tattoo work.
9. (dated) Any substance fixed with latex to harden it.
10. The appearance of an object on a radar screen.
    Smaller target paints would also be preferred to those displayed on the existing DFTI. 1973, International Conference on Radar--Present and Future, 23-25 October, 1973, page 203

verb

1. (transitive) To apply paint to.
2. (transitive) To apply in the manner that paint is applied.
3. (transitive, medicine) To apply with a brush in order to treat some body part.
4. (transitive) To cover (something) with spots of colour, like paint.
5. (transitive) To create (an image) with paints.
   to paint a portrait or a landscape
6. (intransitive) To practise the art of painting pictures.
   I've been painting since I was a young child.
7. (transitive, graphical user interface) To draw an element in a graphical user interface.
   Sent to a minimized window when the icon's background must be filled before it is painted. 1991, Ernest R Tello, Object-oriented Programming for Windows
8. (transitive, figurative) To depict or portray.
   She sued the author of the biography, claiming it painted her as a duplicitous fraud.
9. (intransitive) To color one's face by way of beautifying it.
10. (transitive, military, slang) To direct a radar beam toward.
    "We'll paint the target for the flyboys," the JTAC said.