Other forms: putties
Putty is a soft paste that hardens, once used to hold glass in window frames. A ball of putty, putty knife, set like putty.
Linseed oil putty was how every wooden window was glazed for centuries, and it stays workable for a long time before skinning over, which is what makes it forgiving. It is also used to fill holes before painting. Note putty knife; putty-coloured, a pale greyish beige; and like putty in her hands, meaning completely easy to influence, which is much the commonest use of the word.
1nounputtyA soft paste that hardens, used to fix glass or fill holes.
“He pressed fresh putty around the edges of the new pane of glass.”
putty is a paste.
French potée meant polishing powder and before that the contents of a pot, from pot. The English word narrowed from any pot-paste to this one.
French
potée — polishing powder", originally "the contents of a pot, potful
English, today
putty
Borrowed from French potée (“polishing powder", originally "the contents of a pot, potful”), from French pot (“pot”). More at English pot.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA