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

In July that year, a portrait of Russian President Vladimir Putin was displayed on an easel in front of the empty spot where Trump’s portrait was expected to hang, after a member of nonprofit progressive advocacy organization ProgressNow Colorado snuck in. —Miranda Jeyaretnam, TIME, 24 Mar. 2025

There’s a giant Van Gogh painting on an 80-foot easel—one of three in the world—visible from the highway in the town of Goodland, Kansas. —Megan Michelson, Outside Online, 26 Feb. 2025

Treasures include antique oil paintings on old easels, silver teapots, bookcases, four-post beds, Persian rugs, fainting sofas, rattan porch chairs, and a smattering of estate accessories, from jewelry to furs, hats to small accouterments. —Jenny Adams, Southern Living, 27 Feb. 2025

The practical use of an easel goes beyond just working on art. —Ashlyn Messier, Fox News, 1 Dec. 2024

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.