Checkering

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. The term encompasses a motif made of alternating colored shapes typically presented in a grid format, prevalent across various materials and designs, as well as the craft of implementing such a visual style
2. A design characterized by a repeated pattern of contrasting colors or shapes arranged in a grid, which can apply to textiles, art, and decorative items, as well as the technique used to create this pattern
3. This refers to a visual style using contrasting color arrangements or shapes in a structured format, prevalent in various design fields, and also covers the method of applying such designs

Etymology: The pattern is older than the verb. English "checker" traces back to Anglo-Norman "escheker," meaning "chessboard," which came from Latin "scaccarium," a word tied to the board game. Medieval English dropped the initial syllable and wrote "cheker," and that noun gave us the familiar grid of alternating squares. The board itself was the original object, so the design took its name from the playing surface before anyone painted a pattern on a shirt or a floor. The verb grew out of that noun. "Checkering" is the form used when someone applies the chessboard look to a surface, whether by laying tiles, weaving cloth, or cutting small grooves into the wood of a rifle stock to improve grip. The word now covers both the pattern and the act of making it, so a single term can describe a tiled floor and the labor of creating it.

Synonyms: patterning, crosshatching