Overpainted

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. To have placed a new coat of paint atop an already painted surface, which may change the visual characteristics of the original paint used previously
2. To have covered an earlier layer of paint with fresh paint, resulting in alterations to the original color or texture of the surface
3. To have applied additional layers of paint over a prior painted surface, resulting in modifications to the hue and appearance of the original coating

Etymology: "Overpainted" is built from "over" and "painted", the past participle of "paint". "Paint" comes from Old French "peint", the past participle of "peindre" (to paint), which itself descends from Latin "pingere", meaning to paint or to decorate. "Over" is an ancient Germanic word meaning above or across, shared with German "über". Put together, "overpainted" describes a surface that has had a new layer applied on top of an earlier one. The combination follows a pattern English uses freely: "over" attached to a verb to mean doing the action excessively or on top of something else, as in "overwritten" or "overcooked". The adjective sense describes the result of that action rather than the action itself, so a painting restorer might describe a canvas as overpainted, meaning later layers now obscure or alter the original colours.

Synonyms: repainted, overlaid, enhanced, coated, touched up

Antonyms: underpainted, bare, unpainted, exposed, natural