A stencil is a thin sheet of material, like cardboard, plastic, or metal, with a design cut out of it. When you place the stencil on a surface and apply paint, ink, or spray over it, the cutout shapes transfer onto the surface below, creating a clear, repeatable pattern.

Stencils make it easy to reproduce the same design many times with precision. Artists use stencils to create street art or repeated patterns in paintings. Teachers might use letter stencils to make neat, uniform signs for their classroom. Construction workers use stencils to spray paint parking space numbers or safety warnings. During World War II, military equipment was marked with stenciled numbers and letters so soldiers could quickly identify supplies and vehicles.

You can stencil a design onto paper, fabric, wood, or walls. The verb form means to apply a design using a stencil: “We stenciled stars across the ceiling of the playroom.”

The beauty of a stencil lies in its efficiency. Once you've cut or purchased a stencil, you can recreate the same image precisely dozens or even hundreds of times. Before computers and printers became common, stencils were essential tools for anyone who needed to reproduce text or images quickly and consistently.