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CALICO

 - 5 dictionary results

cal⋅i⋅co

  [kal-i-koh] noun, plural -coes, -cos, adjective
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–noun
1. a plain-woven cotton cloth printed with a figured pattern, usually on one side.
2. British. plain white cotton cloth.
3. an animal having a spotted or particolored coat.
4. Obsolete. a figured cotton cloth from India.
–adjective
5. made of calico.
6. resembling printed calico; spotted or mottled.
Origin:
1495–1505; short for Calico cloth, var. of Calicut cloth, named after city in India which orig. exported it
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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cal·i·co   (kāl'ĭ-kō')   
n.   pl. cal·i·coes or cal·i·cos

    1. A coarse, brightly printed cloth.

    2. Chiefly British A plain white cotton cloth, heavier than muslin.

  2. An animal, such as a cat, having a coat that is mottled in tones of white with red and black.


[After Calicut.]
cal'i·co adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

calico 
1540, corruption of Calicut (mod. Kozhikode), seaport on Malabar coast of India, where Europeans first obtained it. In 16c. it was second only to Goa among Indian commercial ports for European trade. Extended to animal colorings suggestive of printed calicos in 1807, originally of horses.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Computing Dictionary

Calico
C+@

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2007 Denis Howe
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Encyclopedia

calico

all-cotton fabric woven in plain, or tabby, weave and printed with simple designs in one or more colours. Calico originated in Calicut, India, by the 11th century, if not earlier, and in the 17th and 18th centuries calicoes were an important commodity traded between India and Europe.

Learn more about calico with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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