wallpaper

1 of 2

noun

wall·​pa·​per ˈwȯl-ˌpā-pər 

1

: decorative paper for the walls of a room

2

: the background image or set of images displayed on a computer screen

After becoming a member, the user gets to design a homepage with his or her choice of pictures, music, wallpaper, writing, and information making each page unique.

—Fahiym Ratcliffe

wallpaper

2 of 2

verb

wallpapered; wallpapering; wallpapers

transitive verb

: to provide the walls of (a room) with wallpaper

intransitive verb

: to put wallpaper on a wall

Examples of wallpaper in a Sentence

Noun

The wallpaper began to peel.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

In this version, the couple has moved from Chicago to London for a fresh start—bad things happened in Chicago—and the set features a wide town house with dark corners and William Morris wallpaper. — Anna Russell, New Yorker, 7 Sep. 2026

With 89 rooms and a lobby splashed with pink de Gournay wallpaper, The Colony should be at the top of your hotel list. — Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 4 Sep. 2026

Verb

Much of the decor centers around herons, like a bird wallpapered at the checkout desk and even the store’s mascot, Artie, who’s become an important symbol for the two owners. — Kansas City Star, 18 Aug. 2026

But the bathroom is stylishly 1940s with black and yellow tile, striped wallpaper, chrome fixtures, and some modest, period-appropriate updates, and there’s more style in the entry hall, wallpapered with storks on a red background. — Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 3 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1827, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1918, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Rhymes for wallpaper

• newspaper
• notepaper
• sandpaper
• skyscraper
• wastepaper
• caper
• paper
• raper
• scraper
• shaper
• taper
• vapor

Kids Definition

wallpaper

noun

wall·​pa·​per

ˈwȯl-ˌpā-pər

: decorative paper for covering the walls of a room

wallpaper verb