Stencil
A
stencil is a
letter,
number,
cartoon, typographical symbol, illustration, or any other
shape or image in cut-out form (it can be cut out of
paper,
cardboard,
metal or other material). Stencils are used to create sharp-edged paintings of the desired image, by applying paint on the surface with the cut-out, leaving a painting of that shape on the underlying surface.
Silk-screen printing also uses a stencil process, as does mimeography. The masters from which mimeographed pages are printed are often called "stencils." In silk-screening and mimeography, multiple stencils are often used on the same surface to produce multi-colored images.
External link: