Hypertext Webster Gateway: "plaster"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Plaster \Plas"ter\, n. [AS., a plaster (in sense 1), fr. L.
emplastrum, Gr. ?, ?, fr. ? to daub on, stuff in; ? in + ? to
mold: cf. OF. plastre a plaster (in sense 2), F. pl[^a]tre.
Cf. {Plastic}, {Emplaster}, {Piaster}.] [Formerly written
also {plaister}.]
1. (Med.) An external application of a consistency harder
than ointment, prepared for use by spreading it on linen,
leather, silk, or other material. It is adhesive at the
ordinary temperature of the body, and is used, according
to its composition, to produce a medicinal effect, to bind
parts together, etc.; as, a porous plaster; sticking
plaster.
2. A composition of lime, water, and sand, with or without
hair as a bond, for coating walls, ceilings, and
partitions of houses. See {Mortar}.
3. Calcined gypsum, or plaster of Paris, especially when
ground, as used for making ornaments, figures, moldings,
etc.; or calcined gypsum used as a fertilizer.
{Plaster cast}, a copy of an object obtained by pouring
plaster of Paris mixed with water into a mold.
{Plaster of Paris}. [So called because originally brought
from a suburb of Paris.] (Chem.) Anhydrous calcium
sulphate, or calcined gypsum, which forms with water a
paste which soon sets or hardens, and is used for casts,
moldings, etc. The term is loosely applied to any plaster
stone or species of gypsum.
{Plaster of Paris bandage} (Surg.), a bandage saturated with
a paste of plaster of Paris, which on drying forms a
perfectly fitting splint.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Plaster \Plas"ter\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Plastered}; p. pr. &
vb. n. {Plastering}.] [Cf. OF. plastrer to plaster (in sense
2), F. pl[^a]trer.]
1. To cover with a plaster, as a wound or sore.
2. To overlay or cover with plaster, as the ceilings and
walls of a house.
3. Fig.: To smooth over; to cover or conceal the defects of;
to hide, as with a covering of plaster. --Bale.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
plaster
n 1: a mixture of lime or gypsum with sand and water; hardens
into a smooth solid; used to cover walls and ceilings
2: any of several gypsum cements; a white powder (a form of
calcium sulphate) that forms a paste when mixed with water
and hardens into a solid; used in making molds and
sculptures and casts for broken limbs [syn: {plaster of
Paris}]
3: medicine consisting of a soft heated mass of meal or clay
that is spread on a cloth and applied to the skin to treat
inflamed areas or improve circulation etc. [syn: {poultice},
{cataplasm}]
4: a hardened surface of plaster (as on a wall or ceiling);
"there were cracks in the plaster" [syn: {plasterwork}]
5: adhesive tape used in dressing wounds [syn: {adhesive
plaster}, {sticking plaster}]
v 1: cover conspicuously, as by pasting something on; "The
demonstrators plastered the hallways with posters"
2: affix conspicuously; "She plastered warnings all over the
wall"
3: apply a plaster cast to; "plaster the broken arm"
4: apply a heavy coat to [syn: {plaster over}, {stick on}]
5: coat with plaster; "daub the wall" [syn: {daub}]
6: dress by covering with a therapeutic substance [syn: {poultice}]
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