What does engraving mean?
Word: Engraving
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Engraving means a picture or design cut into metal, wood or stone, or a print made from such a cut surface.
How do you spell engraving?
Syllables: en - grav - ing
Tricky part: It starts with en, not in, even though quick speech can make the first syllable sound like 'in'. Ingraving is a common slip.
Watch out for: ingraving, engraiving
Memory tip: The cutting tool enters the metal, so begin this word the way you begin enter.
Engraving in a sentence
Example 1: The old map in the library is an engraving from the eighteenth century.
Example 2: Dad had my name added as a small engraving on the back of the watch.
Example 3: Kiran ran her finger over the engraving on the old brass school bell.
Fun Fact
Before photographs could be printed, many newspapers and books illustrated their pages with engravings: an artist cut the design into a wooden block or metal plate, which was inked and pressed onto paper.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Cookie
Find the extra letter in the word:
engravving
a) i
b) v
c) a
d) r
Show answer
b) v. The vowel before the v is long, as in grave, so the v is not doubled.
Mingle-Mangle
Unscramble the jumbled word in the sentence and choose the correct word:
The museum guide showed us a fine rinvaegng of the Taj Mahal made on a copper plate.
a) painting
b) carving
c) engraving
d) drawing
Show answer
c) engraving. Painting and drawing have no v; carving has one but needs a c, which the jumble lacks. That leaves engraving.
Word Connection
Choose the synonym of the word engraving as used in the sentence:
Grandfather's silver tumbler carries a delicate engraving of a peacock.
a) sticker
b) poster
c) etching
d) ribbon
Show answer
c) etching. An etching, like an engraving, is a design worked into a hard surface; the other three are not.
Spell-o-Spell
Three words in the list are spelt correctly and one is misspelt. Choose the meaning of the misspelt word.
1. sculpter 2. portrait 3. engraving 4. canvas
a) a design cut into a hard surface
b) a painting or photograph of a person
c) an artist who makes figures from stone, wood or metal
d) strong cloth that artists paint on
Show answer
c) an artist who makes figures from stone, wood or metal. Sculptor ends in -or, like actor; engraving, portrait and canvas are all correct.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. To make an engraving, an artist needs ____.
a) a box of wax crayons
b) a roll of sticky tape
c) a soft paintbrush
d) a sharp steel cutting tool
Show answer
d) a sharp steel cutting tool
2. On a trophy, an engraving usually shows ____.
a) the ticket prices for the final
b) a colour photo of the team
c) the full rules of the match
d) the winner's name and the year
Show answer
d) the winner's name and the year
