decalcomania

noun

de·​cal·​co·​ma·​nia di-ˌkal-kə-ˈmā-nē-ə 

1

: the art or process of transferring pictures and designs from specially prepared paper (as to glass)

2

: decal

Examples of decalcomania in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

To bring her surrealist works to life, British artist Ithell Colquhoun employed techniques ranging from fumage to decalcomania, entopic graphomania and parsemage. — Meilan Solly, Smithsonian, 17 July 2019

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French décalcomanie, from décalquer "to trace, transfer by tracing" (from dé- de- + calquer "to trace, copy") + -o- -o- + -manie -mania, after potichomanie "the art of imitating painted porcelain ware," earlier presumably "craze for vases imitating Chinese porcelain," compound with potiche "rounded or polygonal vase with a separate cover, originally one made in China" — more at calque

First Known Use

1864, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for decalcomania

• collectanea
• hypomania
• miscellanea
• monomania
• leishmania
• urania
• mania
• taenia
• megalomania