distemper1
/
dɪˈstɛmpə/
n.
a kind of paint having a base of glue or size instead of oil, used on walls.
▸a method of mural and poster painting using this.
v.
[
often as adj. distempered]
paint with distemper.
Etymology
ME (orig. as a verb in the senses ‘dilute’ and ‘steep’): from OFr. destremper or late L. distemperare ‘soak’.
distemper2
/
dɪˈstɛmpə/
n.
- a viral disease of some animals, especially dogs, causing fever, coughing, and catarrh.
- archaic political disorder.
Etymology
C16 (orig. in the sense ‘bad temper’, later ‘illness’): from ME distemper ‘upset, derange’, from late L. distemperare ‘soak, mix in the wrong proportions’.
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