Watercolor Vocabulary Worksheet

Press Print worksheet to match twelve watercolor terms, from wash and wet-on-wet to glaze, to their meanings.

A sample is on the sheet. What you type replaces it.

What you type stays in your browser. Nothing is sent to us.

NameDateMade at homeroomtools.comDraw a line from each one on the left to its partner on the right.Watercolor vocabularywatercolorpigmentpalettewashwet-on-wetglazebleedtransparentopaquediluteblendblotblocking light, so that nothingunderneath can be seenof wet color: to creep outwardinto the area next to itletting whatever lies underneathshow through clearlya see-through layer brushed overcolor that has driedto dab a wet spot with tissue orcloth to soak it uppainting onto paper or paint thathas not yet driedpaint you thin with water; also apicture done in itto merge colors so that one fadesinto the nextthe ground-up material thatcolors a paint or an inkwatery paint swept across abroad area of the pagea flat surface with wells or spacefor mixing paintsto make a liquid thinner bystirring in water
NameDateMade at homeroomtools.comDraw a line from each one on the left to its partner on the right.Watercolor vocabularyAnswer keywatercolorpigmentpalettewashwet-on-wetglazebleedtransparentopaquediluteblendblotblocking light, so that nothingunderneath can be seenof wet color: to creep outwardinto the area next to itletting whatever lies underneathshow through clearlya see-through layer brushed overcolor that has driedto dab a wet spot with tissue orcloth to soak it uppainting onto paper or paint thathas not yet driedpaint you thin with water; also apicture done in itto merge colors so that one fadesinto the nextthe ground-up material thatcolors a paint or an inkwatery paint swept across abroad area of the pagea flat surface with wells or spacefor mixing paintsto make a liquid thinner bystirring in water
More options

Next step Next: art word search

All 36 terms

Key watercolor words 12

  • bleed Of wet color: to creep outward into the area next to it. "The green began to bleed into the damp sky."
  • blend To merge colors so that one fades into the next. "Blend the orange into the pink while both are damp."
  • blot To dab a wet spot with tissue or cloth to soak it up. "Blot the puddle before it runs down the page."
  • dilute To make a liquid thinner by stirring in water. "Dilute the purple until it looks like weak tea."
  • glaze A see-through layer brushed over color that has dried. "A thin red glaze turned the yellow roof orange."
  • opaque Blocking light, so that nothing underneath can be seen. "An opaque white dot covered the mistake."
  • palette A flat surface with wells or space for mixing paints. "He squeezed three blues onto his palette."
  • pigment The ground-up material that colors a paint or an ink. "The label names the pigment inside each tube."
  • transparent Letting whatever lies underneath show through clearly. "The stripe was so transparent that the pencil lines showed."
  • wash Watery paint swept across a broad area of the page. "A pale yellow wash became the evening sky."
  • watercolor Paint you thin with water; also a picture done in it. "Her watercolor of the harbor hangs by the classroom door."
  • wet-on-wet Painting onto paper or paint that has not yet dried. "Wet-on-wet clouds have soft, fuzzy rims."
Show all 36 terms (24 more)

Brushes, paint and paper 12

  • bristles The hairs or fibers at the working end of a brush. "Leaving the brush in the jar had bent its bristles."
  • easel A frame on legs that props a picture up for the painter. "She tilted the easel so the drips ran downward."
  • ferrule The metal sleeve that joins a brush's hairs to its handle. "The ferrule on his oldest brush had worked loose."
  • gouache A thick water paint that covers what is under it. "He added the white stars last, in gouache."
  • gum arabic A sticky substance from acacia trees that binds paint. "The label lists gum arabic after the color's name."
  • masking tape A sticky paper strip that peels away cleanly later. "Masking tape left a crisp white border."
  • paintbox A carrying case with a whole set of colors inside. "Her paintbox still has its first twelve colors."
  • pan One small dried cake of color in its own little tray. "Touch a wet brush to the pan to wake up the color."
  • sable A fine artist's brush made of a small animal's fur. "Her oldest sable still comes to a sharp point."
  • sponge A squashy pad whose many holes take in and hold water. "Press the sponge on the sky to make a cloud."
  • tube A soft container that is squeezed to push out paste. "She squeezed the last of the blue from the tube."
  • watercolor paper Sheets made specially for painting with wet color. "She taped the watercolor paper to a board."

Techniques and effects 12

  • brushstroke The mark that one sweep of a painter's hand leaves. "Each petal is a single brushstroke."
  • dry brush Using almost no water, so the marks come out scratchy. "Dry brush made the tree bark look rough."
  • flat wash One color laid evenly, with no change from end to end. "A flat wash of gray became the wall."
  • graded wash Color that slowly fades from strong to pale. "The graded wash was dark at the top and nearly white at the hills."
  • highlight The lightest, most brightly lit part of a painted object. "A dot of bare paper is the highlight in the eye."
  • lifting Taking color back off the paper to lighten a spot. "Lifting with a damp tissue gave the moon its glow."
  • resist A coating, such as wax, that paint will not cover. "The white crayon worked as a resist for the snowflakes."
  • spatter To flick or shake tiny drops across a surface. "Spatter brown from a toothbrush to make sand."
  • stipple To make dark and light areas out of tiny dots. "Stipple the leaves with the tip of the brush."
  • tint A pale, faint version of a color. "Lots of water turns red into a pink tint."
  • underpainting A first coat laid down as a base for later ones. "A pale blue underpainting sits beneath the whole lake."
  • wet-on-dry Painting on dry paper, which gives crisp edges. "She added the fence wet-on-dry so each post stayed sharp."

How this list was compiled: Term list chosen for this site on 2026-10-12. Each meaning is written in our own words and was checked that day in two references: the entry for the term in Wiktionary, the free dictionary (https://en.wiktionary.org/), whose text is under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license, and the entry in the Cambridge Dictionary (https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/). Watercolor was read in Wiktionary under watercolour, bristles under bristle and dry brush under drybrush. Where a dictionary has no entry or no sense of painting, the reference is an article of English Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/), whose text is under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license: Watercolor painting for wash, flat wash, graded wash, wet-on-wet, wet-on-dry, dry brush, lifting, pan and tube; Glaze (painting technique) for glaze; Resist for resist; and Gum arabic, Underpainting, Watercolor paper and Ferrule for the terms they are named after. The answers under the list rest on the articles Watercolor painting and Gouache. The sentence in quotation marks after each meaning is our own. Licence: own work

How it works

This watercolor vocabulary worksheet prints twelve terms down the left and their meanings, mixed up, down the right. It opens on key words such as wash and pigment. Two more sets cover tools and techniques.

Read the full guide

A watercolor vocabulary terms worksheet

Set opens on Key watercolor words: watercolor, pigment, palette, wash, wet-on-wet, glaze, bleed, transparent, opaque, dilute, blend and blot. Brushes, paint and paper runs from paintbox, bristles, ferrule and sable to gouache and watercolor paper.

Technique words, from wet-on-dry to tint

Techniques and effects prints wet-on-dry, dry brush, flat wash, graded wash, lifting, resist, spatter, stipple, underpainting, highlight, brushstroke and tint. Under the tool each term has a sentence from an art room, such as "A thin red glaze turned the yellow roof orange."

Questions and answers

What is the difference between wet-on-wet and wet-on-dry?

In wet-on-wet the paper is damp or wet, so colors spread, blend softly and suit misty effects and loose shapes. In wet-on-dry the paper is dry, which gives the painter more control for detailed areas.

What is watercolor paint made of?

Four main things: a pigment; gum arabic, the binder that holds the pigment in suspension; additives such as glycerin or honey; and water, which thins the paint for use and then evaporates.

What is the difference between watercolor and gouache?

Both are paints used with water. Watercolor is transparent, so the paper shimmers through it. Gouache is designed to be opaque, and is also called body color or opaque watercolor.

What are the basic watercolor techniques?

The usual list is the wash, flat or graded; wet-on-wet and wet-on-dry; glazing, also called layering; dry brush; and lifting. Masking an area and sprinkling salt on wet paint are used as well.

More tools

Show 6 more

Browse Handwriting