Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun plural Small pieces of fur powdered or sprinkled on other furs, in resemblance to the spots on ermine; also, bands of ermine.
  • noun Decoration by means of numerous small figures, usually the same figure often repeated. See powdered, 2.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • a. & n. from powder, v. t.
  • [Obs.] A heated tub in which an infected lecher was placed for cure.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb Present participle of powder.
  • noun A patch or application of powder.

Etymologies

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Examples

  • In houses of any pretension was a small room set apart for the purpose, and it was known as the powdering-room.

    At the Sign of the Barber's Pole Studies In Hirsute History William Andrews 1878

  • They keep silent about it as though it were a kind of powdering or painting.

    The Art of Letters Robert Lynd 1914

  • Another Committee of Fourteen investigator in 1914 observed the loose behavior of women workers in a restaurant: “They were putting on their aprons, combing their hair, powdering their noses, . . . all the while tossing back and forth to each other, apparently in a spirit of good-natured comradeship, the most vile epithets that I had ever heard emerge from the lips of a human being.”

    A Renegade History of the United States Thaddeus Russell 2010

  • I guess she was powdering her nose, or something. datingjesus

    Where are the Protestants? « Dating Jesus 2009

  • On the endless, windy beach at l'Espiguette, a few kilometers outside of town, a fine, white powdering of it coats the sand.

    The Salt of the Earth Craig Winneker 2011

  • At some historical periods, wealthy people have done stupid and unproductive things, like powdering their faces with lead or binding their feet, which less privileged people are thankfully not compelled to do.

    The internship myth | Emily Sands-Bonin 2011

  • On the endless, windy beach at l'Espiguette, a few kilometers outside of town, a fine, white powdering of it coats the sand.

    The Salt of the Earth Craig Winneker 2011

  • Far worse are a group of Harlem youths who notice Emma Lou powdering her nose near the same spot.

    Passing Fancies James Campbell 2011

  • Quickly powdering my T-zone and applying a coat of lip gloss, I was ready to do my whole mysterious, hot girl routine.

    It Happened to Me: I Told My Boyfriend I Was Born a Boy 2011

  • Even as some are touting her as a serious candidate for president of the United States, it's important to realize she proved ill-prepared to be governor of Alaska -- more interested in powdering her nose than putting it to the grindstone.

    Sarah Palin: The GOP's Poison Pearl 2010

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