Search blog

Differences between Paint and Draw in English

Paint and Draw are two English vocabulary words that both relate to the act of painting or drawing, but each word is used in different cases. In this article today, let's PREP explore the concepts and the differences between Paint and Draw!

Differences between 2 words Paint and Draw in English

I. What is Paint?
II. What is Draw?
III. Differences between Paint and Draw
IV. Exercises to distinguish Paint vs Draw with answers
1. 1. Exercise: Fill in the blanks with Paint or Draw
2. 2. Answers

I. What is Paint?

Before distinguishing the difference between Paint and Draw, let's explore the meaning, usage, and common words that go with Paint!

In English, Paint is pronounced /peɪnt/ and functions as a noun and a verb.

Paint acts as a noun, meaning: a coloured liquid that is put on a surface such as a wall to decorate it. Example: This wall needs another coat of paint.
Paint acts as a verb, meaning: to cover a surface with paint, to make a picture using paints. Example: We've painted the bedroom blue.

Words, phrases, idioms that go with Paint:

Idioms with Paint	Meaning	Example
Paint a picture (of something)	to describe or show something in a particular way	The statistics do not paint an optimistic picture.
Paint the town red	to go out and enjoy yourself by drinking alcohol, dancing, laughing with friends, etc.	I'm ready to paint the town red with a few of my closest friends.
Paint a black picture of something/someone	to describe a situation or person as extremely bad	Some people tend to paint a black picture of their competitors to gain an unfair advantage.
Watch paint dry	used to refer to an activity that you consider extremely boring	Sitting through that boring lecture was like watching paint dry.
Paint (something/someone) with a broad brush	to describe or consider someone or something in a very general way, without paying attention to small details or differences	Don't paint teenagers with a broad brush; not all of them are irresponsible.
Oil paint	a thick type of paint with an oil base, used for painting pictures	Lisa prefers to use oil paint for her landscapes because it allows for richer textures and colors.
Face paint	paint that is used to cover a person's face, or draw designs on it as a decoration	The children had fun getting face paint designs at the carnival.
Spray paint	paint that is forced from a container under pressure so that it comes out in very small drops	The artist used spray paint to create a vibrant mural on the side of the building.
Paint stripper	a liquid used to remove old paint from wooden surfaces	John used a paint stripper to remove the old layers of paint from the wooden furniture.
Paint thinner	a liquid that you add to paint to make it less thick or to remove paint from brushes	The artist added paint thinner to the oil paint to achieve a smoother texture.
Poster paint	brightly coloured paint used for painting pictures	The kids enjoyed using poster paint to create colorful posters for the school event.

II. What is Draw?

Before distinguishing the difference between Paint and Draw, let's explore the meaning, usage, and words/phrases that go with Draw!

In English, Draw is pronounced /drɔ/ and functions as a noun and a verb.

Draw acts as a noun, meaning: someone or something that attracts a lot of people; an act of using some of the supply of something, especially oil or gas, or the amount that is used; (in sports and games) a situation in which each side or team has equal points or is in an equal position and neither side wins. For example:
- Every team needs a superstar who will be a big draw.
- The draw for the first round will take place on Monday night.
- The hockey game ended in a draw, 2 to 2.
Draw acts as a verb, meaning: to make a picture of something or someone with a pencil or pen; to attract attention or interest; to make or show a comparison between things; to move in a particular direction, especially in a vehicle; to pull or direct something in a particular direction. For example:
- Jonathan can draw very well.
- Jack's an excellent speaker who always draws a crowd.
- You can't really draw a comparison between the two cases - they're completely different.
- I drew the logical conclusion that they were husband and wife.
- The train slowly drew into the station.
- Suddenly John drew a knife and held it to my throat.

Idioms with Draw:

Idioms with Draw	Meaning	Example
Draw a blank	to fail to get an answer or a result	When asked about the incident, he drew a blank and couldn't remember anything.
Draw a veil over something	not speak about it because it is unpleasant and you do not want to think about it	After the embarrassing incident, they decided to draw a veil over the matter and not discuss it further.
Draw breath	to breathe	Jack paused to draw breath before continuing with his speech.
Draw the line	to never do something because you think it is wrong; to put a limit on what you will do or allow to happen, esp. because you feel something is wrong	The manager had to draw the line when it came to tardiness, and any further delays would not be tolerated.
Draw a line under something	to decide to stop thinking or talking about something, or to stop something from continuing, and consider it finished	After resolving the conflict, they agreed to draw a line under the issue and move forward with their relationship.

Phrasal verbs with Draw:

Phrasal verbs with Draw	Meaning	Example
Draw back	to move away from someone or something, usually because you are surprised or frightened	When John saw the flames, he quickly drew back from the fire.
Draw down	to reduce a supply of something that has been created over a period of time	The company decided to draw down its reserves to fund the new project.
Draw in	If days, evenings, or nights draw in, it becomes darker earlier because autumn or winter is coming	As winter approaches, the evenings start to draw in earlier.
Draw off	to remove a small amount of liquid from a larger amount, especially by allowing it to flow through a pipe	Richard carefully drew off a small amount of liquid from the container.
Draw on	to start using a supply of something	Anna drew on her experience to handle the difficult situation effectively.

III. Differences between Paint and Draw

So what are the differences between Paint and Draw? Let’s take a look at the table below!

	Paint	Draw
Meaning	Used when painting or coloring with paints like watercolor, oil paint, etc.	Used when drawing with pencils, pens, charcoal, chalk or similar tools, like sketching a draft and usually in black and white.
Example	Can you help me to paint the wall?	Can you help me to draw the line of the picture on the wall?

IV. Exercises to distinguish Paint vs Draw with answers

To better understand the Paint and Draw differences, let's PREP complete the practice exercise below!

1. Exercise: Fill in the blanks with Paint or Draw

Do you want to _________ a picture in oil paints?
You can use charcoal or a pencil to _______ a sketch.
I am planning to _____ my room blue.
He used a stick to _____ a circle on the sand.
My teacher asked me to _____ a diagram with chalk on the board.
Anna _____ a beautiful landscape using watercolors.
Jack _____ a detailed sketch of the old building with charcoal.
The artist _____ the entire room in shades of blue and green.
Jennie _____ a cartoon character on the whiteboard during the presentation.
They want to _____ the fence white to match the house.

2. Answers

1 - Paint	2 - Draw	3 - Paint	4 - Draw	5 - Draw
6 - Painted	7 - Drew	8 - Painted	9 - Drew	10 - Paint

Above, PREP has shared with you the definitions as well as the differences between Paint and Draw. Keep following PREP to regularly update lots of useful English knowledge!

Master Tu Pham

Founder/CEO at Prep

Founder of Prep Smart Test Preparation Platform. With over 10 years of experience in teaching and test preparation, Mr. Tú has helped thousands of students achieve high scores in the IELTS exam. In addition, Mr. Tú Phạm is also a consulting expert in British Council programs and a speaker at many leading educational events, programs, and conferences.