What does pochoir mean?
A pochoir is a reusable stencil with lettering or a design cut into a thin sheet of card, metal, plastic, or another material. The user places it over a surface and applies ink, paint, or pigment through the openings, producing a consistent image without having to redraw every letter by hand. Pochoirs became especially useful in commercial signwriting, where repeated names, labels, and decorative elements had to look uniform. Traditional sign painters often made their own pochoirs by cutting the design into thin brass or zinc sheets, while designers today may use digital or mechanical versions to create printed lettering and graphics. The word is more specialized than “stencil”: it usually suggests a relatively precise guide for lettering or a recognizable decorative form. Although associated with hand-painted signs and traditional craft, pochoirs remain relevant in contemporary design, restoration, and commercial printing.
nounA thin sheet, usually made of card, metal, or plastic, with a design or lettering cut out of it. Ink, paint, or another medium is applied through the openings to produce repeated letters or patterns.
- A cut-out stencil used to apply ink, paint, or another medium in a repeated design, especially lettering.
"The sign painter used a pochoir to reproduce the brewery's name neatly on each barrel."
"The artist held the pochoir firmly against the board before brushing paint through the letter openings."
"This archive contains a brass pochoir once used to paint the shop's name on window displays."
The plural refers to multiple individual stencils or designs.
"The workshop stores its pochoirs in shallow wooden drawers."
A pochoir turns freehand lettering into a repeatable design: one carefully cut sheet can guide the same name onto hundreds of signs, labels, or posters.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of pochoir
The English word comes from French pochoir, a stencil, derived from pocher, meaning to punch or pierce. French poche, the source of that verb, means “pocket” and is cognate with English pocket; the idea is of a tool that leaves a shaped mark when a substance is applied or punched through an opening. The closely related French term poché refers to shaded areas in drawing and is also based on the same root.
Related word forms
How pochoir is actually used
The term is chiefly associated with typography, signwriting, lettering, and graphic design. It is more specialized than the everyday word “stencil.”