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intaglio

 - 2 dictionary results

in⋅tagl⋅io

[in-tal-yoh, -tahl-; It. een-tah-lyaw] noun, plural -tagl⋅ios, Italian -ta⋅gli [-tah-lyee] , verb
–noun
1. incised carving, as opposed to carving in relief.
2. ornamentation with a figure or design sunk below the surface.
3. a gem, seal, piece of jewelry, or the like, cut with an incised or sunken design.
4. an incised or countersunk die.
5. a figure or design so produced.
6. a process in which a design, text, etc., is engraved into the surface of a plate so that when ink is applied and the excess is wiped off, ink remains in the grooves and is transferred to paper in printing, as in engraving or etching.
7. an impression or printing from such a design, engraving, etc.
–verb (used with object)
8. to incise or display in intaglio.

Origin:
1635–45; < It, deriv. of intagliare to cut in, engrave, equiv. to in- in- 2 + tagliare to cut < LL tāliāre, deriv. of L tālea a cutting; see tally
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To intaglio
in·ta·glio   (ĭn-tāl'yō, -täl'-)   
n.   pl. inta·glios
    1. A figure or design carved into or beneath the surface of hard metal or stone.

    2. The art or process of carving a design in this manner.

  1. A gemstone carved in intaglio.

  2. Printing done with a plate bearing an image in intaglio.

  3. A die incised so as to produce a design in relief.


[Italian, from intagliare, to engrave : in-, in (from Latin; see in-2) + tagliare, to cut (from Vulgar Latin *talliāre, from Late Latin tāliāre; see tailor).]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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