noun · academic
fresco
UK/ˈfrɛs.kəʊ/US/ˈfrɛs.koʊ/FRES·co
Band 7+speakingtask2
a painting done on wet plaster on a wall or ceiling, or the technique of doing such paintings
Examples
“Michelangelo's ceiling frescoes in the Sistine Chapel are world famous.”
“Conservators specialise in cleaning and stabilising ancient frescoes.”
“A true fresco must be painted while the plaster is still wet.”
Band 8 sentence
“The conservator's report detailed the pigments and techniques used in several fifteenth‑century frescoes.”
Collocations
- ceiling fresco
- restoration of frescoes
- medieval fresco
Word family
frescoes plural nounfrescoist noun
Common mistakes
mural→fresco
frescos→frescoes
Say it for a higher band
5wall painting→6mural→7+fresco
Synonyms
wall painting
Easily confused
mural
“Although commonly called murals, many Renaissance wall paintings are actually frescoes.”
Related words
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In Art & Culture
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