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greasepaint

greasepaint

3 7.8
Thick oily makeup that actors put on for the stage
  • noun
  • /ˈɡriːspeɪnt/
  • Specialized
translation icon : pintura de grasa
  • The performers used bright greasepaint to enhance their features under the stage lights.

Examples

  • The actor carefully applied the greasepaint before stepping onto the stage.

  • To prepare for her role, she covered her face in greasepaint for the theater production.

  • It's greasepaint, to feel like my character.

  • Correct me if I'm wrong, but actors wear greasepaint.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • The roar of the greasepaint, the smell of the crowd.

  • The lights, the ambience, the greasepaint...

  • Since I wore glasses, all I really needed was a big cigar and black greasepaint eyebrows and a moustache.

    Blog text (13)
  • His face was obscured by greasepaint, and he wore a borrowed, loose-fitting camouflage jumpsuit, vest, and cap.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • They had met through student theatre, a classical world of greasepaint, sewn sheeting, Shakespearean rhythms, clarity, and ferocity.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • She smiled sadly under her greasepaint freckles and red yarn wig; the Raggedy Ann costume was just a slight twist on her usual appearance.

    Fiction book (2000)

How Much

whore's paint
  • Offensive
9.9
greasepaint
  • Specialized
3 7.8
make-up
36 2.0
bare skin
4 2.4

Surface Forms

greasepaint singular
greasepaints plural

Morphology

greasepaint = grease + paint (semi-transparent) = grease + paint

The components 'grease' + 'paint' are literal (an oily paint), but the compound specifically denotes theatrical makeup, a specialized sense not automatically inferred by all learners.

Etymology

Greasepaint comes from the two parts grease ('fat' or 'oily') and paint. It was the greasy kind of paint actors put on for the stage, so greasepaint means the thick, oily make-up used in the theatre.