Plasters

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Materials employed to shield wounds, substances used to coat and smooth walls or ceilings, or adhesive strips that affix medical dressings all share this name
2. Strips with sticky backs used to cover and protect small injuries ; a substance applied wet to walls or ceilings that dries hard and smooth
3. Medical tape designed to stick to skin and safeguard cuts or sores ; a mixture spread on surfaces to create a smooth, durable finish

Etymology: "Plasters" is simply the plural of "plaster," so the story is that of the singular noun. The root lies in Greek "emplastron," meaning something smeared or spread on, formed from "en" (in, on) and "plassein" (to form or mould). The Romans borrowed it as "emplastrum," a salve or bandage applied to the body, and over time the initial syllable wore away, giving late Latin "plastrum." English took the word from Old English, where "plaster" replaced the older native term "clīþa," which had meant a bandage or dressing. The Old English word itself came from that late Latin form, so it has been in the language for more than a thousand years. The sense of a sticky medicinal application has barely changed, which is why the modern adhesive strip still answers to the same name.

Synonyms: bandages, dressings, adhesives, patches, gauzes