The Collaborative International Dictionary
Etching \Etch"ing\, n.
The act, art, or practice of engraving by means of acid which eats away lines or surfaces left unprotected in metal, glass, or the like. See Etch, v. t.
A design carried out by means of the above process; a pattern on metal, glass, etc., produced by etching.
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An impression on paper, parchment, or other material, taken in ink from an etched plate.
Etching figures (Min.), markings produced on the face of a crystal by the action of an appropriate solvent. They have usually a definite form, and are important as revealing the molecular structure.
Etching needle, a sharp-pointed steel instrument with which lines are drawn in the ground or varnish in etching.
Etching stitch (Needlework), a stitch used outline embroidery.
Usage examples of "etching figures".
The wind shifted to the northwest and keened for days, and he lay half out of his sleeping furs, etching figures with his long fingernail.