A Plaster on a Wall and a Plaster on a Finger
Plaster covers walls and sets broken bones. In Britain it is also the small adhesive dressing Americans call a Band-Aid.
Plaster is a paste that hardens: on walls, and around broken limbs. British English adds a third sense that confuses visitors — a *plaster* is a small adhesive dressing for a cut, called a *Band-Aid* or *bandage* in America. All three come from the same idea of something spread on and left to set.
- A paste for coating walls. *A skim of plaster.*
- A hard casing for a broken bone. *His arm is in plaster.*
- An adhesive dressing (British). *Put a plaster on it.*
- To cover thickly. *Walls plastered with posters.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | plaster | Wet plaster. |
| Verb | plaster | Plaster the ceiling. |
| Person | plasterer | A skilled plasterer. |
| Compound | plasterboard | Sheets of plasterboard. |
| Related | plaster of Paris | A plaster of Paris cast. |
How it is used in a sentence
- The plaster needs a week to dry.Building.
- Her leg was in plaster for six weeks.Medical.
- It is a plaster over a much bigger problem.A superficial fix.
Wall finishes
- Plaster — a gypsum or lime coating, smooth when set
- Render — the outdoor equivalent, on external walls
- Plasterboard / drywall — sheets fixed to a frame
- Skim — a thin finishing coat
- Plaster of Paris — gypsum plaster, named for the quarries at Montmartre
From Latin *emplastrum*, a medical dressing, from Greek *emplastron*. The medical sense is older than the building one, which explains the British word for a sticking plaster.
Plaster or Band-Aid?
Plaster in British English, Band-Aid in American, though Band-Aid is a trade name. Adhesive bandage is the neutral term.
Why plaster of Paris?
Because large gypsum deposits at Montmartre in Paris supplied Europe with the raw material for centuries.