Putty is a soft, moldable material that hardens over time, used mainly to seal gaps or hold things in place. When you press fresh putty into a crack around a window, it fills the space completely, then gradually becomes firm and watertight. Plumbers use putty to seal around pipes, and painters use it to fill small holes in walls before painting.

Putty has been used for centuries: people sealed windows with it long before modern caulking materials existed. Traditional putty is made from powdered chalk and linseed oil, creating a substance that stays workable in your hands but eventually dries hard.

When something is described as putty in your hands, it means easily controlled or influenced, like soft putty that takes whatever shape you give it. If someone says “she had him like putty in her hands,” they mean he’d do whatever she wanted.

Different types of putty serve different purposes. Glaziers use putty to hold glass panes in window frames. Silly Putty, the toy, is a special kind that bounces and stretches but never truly hardens.