easel

noun

ea·​sel ˈē-zəl 

: a frame for supporting something (such as an artist's canvas)

Illustration of easel

Examples of easel in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The first post features mom and dad standing in front of an easel holding a canvas with paint on it. —Devonne Goode, Parents, 5 Mar. 2025

Lenovo also includes a stylus for inking and an easel stand for the tablet. —PCMAG, 17 Dec. 2024

One of Georg Friedrich Kersting’s portraits of the artist, 1811’s Caspar David Friedrich in His Studio, gives us Friedrich alone, seated at an easel, rendering a waterfall on the canvas. —Jerry Saltz, Vulture, 7 Feb. 2025

Art teacher Alana Wood stood beside easels and art projects hanging on the walls and displayed on shelves. —Jesse Wright, Chicago Tribune, 4 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Dutch ezel, literally, "donkey," going back to Middle Dutch esel, going back to Germanic *asil- (whence Old Saxon & Old High German esil "donkey," Old English esol, eosol, Gothic asilus), altered from Latin asinus — more at ass entry 1

First Known Use

1596, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for easel

• weasel

Kids Definition

easel

noun

ea·​sel ˈē-zəl 

: a frame for supporting something (as an artist's canvas)

Etymology

from Dutch ezel "a frame to hold an artist's canvas," literally, "donkey"

Word Origin

An easel is a frame for holding up such things as an artist's painting or a chalkboard. In the 17th century the Dutch had become famous throughout Europe for their oil painting. Thus it was their word ezel, which they used to refer to this piece of equipment, that was borrowed into English around that time. This sense of ezel was an extension of the original meaning "donkey," probably because an easel, like a beast of burden, is used to hold things.