Woodcut

Part of speech: noun, verb

Pronunciation: /ˈwʊdˌkʌt/

Definitions

1. A method of artistic expression that employs the carving of designs into a wooden surface for reproduction through printing
2. An art form that consists of etching or shaping images on wood blocks to create prints or illustrations
3. A traditional printmaking process involving carving a reversed image into a wooden block to apply ink and transfer the design onto paper ; an image or illustration created by printing from a specially carved wooden block

Etymology: "Woodcut" is about as transparent as English compounds get: "wood" plus "cut," the cut being the one made into the block. The sense has a second layer, though. The image is what stands out in relief once the wood is carved away around it, so the printed picture is the part that was left standing rather than the part that was removed. Printmakers cut away the background, inking only the raised surface, which is why the process works the way it does. The compound itself is plain and literal. It names the tool-and-material process rather than a specific artist or event, so there is no single inventor to credit. Its form records a practical description of a method, and the term has stayed attached to that method as the medium developed.