stip·pling
ˈsti-p(ə-)liŋ
1
: a technique in drawing or engraving in which small dots are clustered together especially to give the effect of shading
She specializes in creating beautiful pieces using watercolor and pen stippling …—Cary Jordan
… Brooklyn Bridge Park is hosting a workshop on a technique, stippling, used by botanical illustrators for centuries.—Susan De Vries
also
: a visual element produced by this technique
Once the paint was completely dry, the stippling and line patterns were drawn using fine-point, black markers. —Virginia Hetzel
2
: a cluster of small spots or marks: such as
a
: a cluster of spots or specks (as on a plant) that resembles artistic stippling
Although most photos of mountain roses show light to deep pink petals, the bloom that I photographed had bright pink stippling on a very light pink, almost cream background.—Jeff Mitton
Spider mites cause yellowing or stippling on the leaves.—Karen Brewer Grossman
Basophilic stippling is found in many red blood cells and may be present in cases where there is a high blood lead concentration.—K. J. Duncan et al.
b
: a series of residual marks surrounding a bullet hole or wound
Investigators … found no evidence of stippling, which is a noticeable array of small abrasions around a gunshot wound caused by particles of gunpowder that are present when a gun is fired from a short distance.—Lizzie Kaboski
The camera also picks up on stippling, small dark powder spots surrounding a gunshot hole. … the size and spread of stippling indicates how close or far away a person was when shooting a gun.—Elijah Greene
3
: a surface texture applied to the grip area especially of a gun to provide a more secure grip
The gun shot just fine, and the stippling was just aggressive enough to help with a firm hold, but not annoyingly sharp …—Roy Huntington
Stippling is an added texture to the grip area, done with a hammer and chisel.—Greg Derr
also
: the act of applying stippling to a surface
… laser stippling, which applies "a more aggressive grip texture" allowing one to get a better grip on the firearm. —Karen Kistler
Translated to the firearms world, the use of soldering irons to melt the plastic in order to add texture to a handgun is also called stippling. —Mike Cramer
stippling
2 of 2present participle of stipple entry 1
Cite this Entry
“Stippling.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stippling. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.
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