wall-paper

Noun

wallpaper (countable and uncountable, plural wallpapers)

1. (uncountable) Decorative paper-like material used to cover the inner walls of buildings.

   Synonyms:

   paper[Appendix:Glossary

2. (countable) A roll of such paper.
3. (countable) A style or design of such material.
   • He is letting her select the wallpapers for the whole house.
4. (attributive, figuratively, sometimes, uncountable) Anything that serves as a background or part of the surroundings.
   • This was not the wallpaper television that flickered away in the background in every dealing room but was not really watched. This was finely targeted and timely broadcast of stuff dealers would want to drop everything to watch.2004, Brian Mooney, Barry Simpson, Breaking News: How the Wheels Came off at Reuters, page 114
5. An image or tiled pattern used as the background of a computer desktop.
   • He chose a Minecraft design as his computer's wallpaper.

   Synonyms:

   desktop image

6. (slang) Generic footage of a building or location that may be used in the background of a related news report.
   • Scripts that include brief reference to a picture turn stock footage from 'wallpaper' to illustration.1983, Av Westin, Newswatch: How TV Decides the News, page 88

See all 9 meanings of wallpaper