paintless

c.1225 (implied in painting "result of applying paint"), from O.Fr. peinter, from peint, pp. of peindre "to paint," from L. pingere "to paint," from PIE base *pik-/*pig- "cut." Sense evolution between PIE and L. was, presumably, from "decorate with cut marks" to "decorate" to "decorate with color." Cf. Skt. pingah "reddish," pesalah "adorned, decorated, lovely," pimsati "hews out, cuts, carves, adorns;" O.C.S. pegu "variegated;" Gk. poikilos "variegated;" O.H.G. fehjan "to adorn;" O.C.S. pisati, Lith. piesiu "to write." Probably representing the "cutting" branch of the family are O.E. feol (see file (n.)); O.C.S. pila "file, saw," Lith. pela "file." The noun is from 1602. The verb meaning "to color with paint" (c.1250) is earlier than the artistic sense of "to make a picture of" (c.1290) and older than painting in the sense of "an artist's picture in paint" (c.1388); but painter is older in the sense of "artist who paints pictures" (1340) than in the sense of "workman who colors surfaces with paint" (c.1400); from O.Fr. peintour, from L. pictor, from pingere. As a surname, it is attested from 1240, but impossible to say which sense is meant. To paint the town (red) "go on a spree" first recorded 1884; to paint (someone or something) black "represent it as wicked or evil" is from 1596. Adj. paint-by-numbers "simple" is attested by 1970.