Meanings
plural maulsticks · alternative mahlstick · alternative mahlstock · alternative malstick
- artA short stick with a pad on one end, used by a painter to steady their hand, and to prevent it from accidentally touching the painting.
Here the lamps blazed as a dozen or so of the brethren were seated at their desks with maulsticks to rest their wrists on as they used their quills to copy texts on to vellum from the skins of goats or sheep.
2012, Peter Tremayne, Behold a Pale Horse: A Mystery of Ancient Ireland, page 292
Synonyms & antonyms
nouna long stick that a painter uses to support the hand holding the brush
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- GermanMahlstock
- Englishmaulstick
From German Mahlstock.
More words from German
Full word history & related roots →Translations
French appui-main
- appui-mainshort stick
Icelandic málarastafur
- málarastafurshort stick
Irish lámhthaca péintéara
- lámhthaca péintéarashort stick
Italian appoggiamano
- appoggiamanoshort stick
Polish malsztuk, malsztok
- malsztukshort stick
- malsztokshort stick
Cite this entry
maulstick. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/maulstick
“maulstick.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/maulstick. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “maulstick,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/maulstick.
Source: maulstick on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.