onionskin

O1N1I1O1N1S1K5I1N1

noun

A thin, strong, light, translucent paper; used especially for making carbon copies.

Similar
onion paperflimsy
Scrabble 13
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Meanings

nounonionskin (countable and uncountable, plural onionskins)

plural onionskins · alternative onion skin

  1. countableuncountableA thin, strong, light, translucent paper; used especially for making carbon copies.

    I heard the dry-leaf rustle of onionskin papers.

    1952, Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man, Penguin Books (2014), page 406

    Synonyms: onion paper

  2. countableuncountableA kind of marble with swirls of color on the outside.

Synonyms & antonyms

nounA thin, strong, light, translucent paper; used especially for making carbon copies.

Similar
onion paper

More synonyms by meaning

nouna thin strong lightweight translucent paper used especially for making carbon copies

Similar
flimsy
Broader
typewriter papertyping paper
Also see
flimsyonion paper

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

From onion + skin; named for its resemblance to the skin of an onion (thin and crinkly).

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Catalan paper ceba
  • paper cebapaper
Finnish läpilyöntipaperi
  • läpilyöntipaperipaper
Spanish papel cebolla
  • papel cebollapaper
Cite this entry
APA

onionskin. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/onionskin

MLA

“onionskin.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/onionskin. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “onionskin,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/onionskin.

Source: onionskin on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.