Putty Was Named After the Pot It Was Made In
Putty is a soft mouldable paste used to seal windows. The name comes from the French word for a potful.
Putty is a soft mouldable paste of whiting and linseed oil, used to fix glass into window frames. The name is about the container, not the substance: French *potée* meant the contents of a pot, and the word covered various pot-made preparations before English settled it on the glazier's paste. *Putty in someone's hands* means completely pliable, and *putty-coloured* names a pale greyish beige that took its name from the material.
- A glazing paste. *Window putty.*
- Putty in your hands — easily controlled. *Putty in her hands.*
- A pale beige colour. *Putty-coloured.*
- Putty knife — the tool. *A putty knife.*
- French — *potée*, a potful. *The source.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | putty | Putty. |
| Verb | putty | Putty the frame. |
| Compound | putty knife | A putty knife. |
| Adjective | putty | Putty grey. |
| French | potée | A potful. |
- He pressed putty round the pane.Glazing.
- She was putty in his hands.Idiom.
- The walls are painted putty.Colour.
Building pastes and their uses
- Putty — bedding glass into wooden window frames
- Filler — repairing holes in wood or plaster
- Grout — filling the joints between tiles
- Mastic — a flexible sealant for gaps
- Mortar — bonding bricks and stone
French *potée*, the contents of a pot, from *pot*. English recorded it in the 1600s for the glazier's compound.
Why is putty called that?
From French potée, a potful. The word described things prepared in a pot before it narrowed to the glazier's paste.
What does putty in your hands mean?
Completely under someone's influence, as pliable as soft putty.