Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - stencil

 I. noun  Etymology: probably ultimately from Middle English stanseld brightly ornamented, from Anglo-French estencele spangled, past participle of estenceler to sparkle, from estencele spark, from Vulgar Latin *stincilla, alteration of Latin scintilla  Date: 1707  1. an impervious material (as a sheet of paper, thin wax, or woven fabric) perforated with lettering or a design through which a substance (as ink, paint, or metallic powder) is forced onto a surface to be printed  2. something (as a pattern, design, or print) that is produced by means of a ~  3. a printing process that uses a ~  II. transitive verb  (~ed or ~led; ~ing or ~ling)  Date: circa 1828  1. to mark or paint with a ~  2. to produce by ~  • ~er or ~ler noun