Fresco

noun; also verb (transitive)

/ˈfrɛskəʊ/

A technique of mural painting in which pigments are applied to plaster — either wet (buon fresco) so that the colours bond chemically with the wall, or dry (fresco secco) on lime-washed plaster.

✍️ Usage in a UPSC answer

The restored frescoes of Ajanta, far from being mere relics, function as a living archive of India's syncretic heritage, and their conservation must therefore be treated as an instrument of soft power and civilisational diplomacy rather than a peripheral cultural expenditure.

Synonyms

muralwall paintingfresco paintingmuralismsecco

Antonyms

easel paintingcanvas painting

🌱 Word Family

fresco (v), frescoed (adj), frescoist (n), frescos/frescoes (n pl)

🔡 Root

Italian fresco = fresh, cool; Vulgar Latin friscum; Proto-Germanic friskaz = fresh

📜 Etymology

From Italian fresco ("fresh, cool"), from Vulgar Latin friscum, from Proto-Germanic friskaz; entered English in the 1590s in the phrase in fresco ("on fresh plaster"); first used as a standalone noun for a painting c. 1670.

🧠 Memory Hook

Fresco shares its root with FRESH: the pigment must be laid on FRESH, still-wet plaster - paint it fresh or it won't stick.

🏛️ History & Culture 📖 Seen in: Indian Art — Painting & Sculpture

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