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flax 
Audio Help [flaks] Pronunciation Key
Audio Help [flaks] Pronunciation Key –noun
| 1. | any plant of the genus Linum, esp. L. usitatissimum, a slender, erect, annual plant having narrow, lance-shaped leaves and blue flowers, cultivated for its fiber and seeds. |
| 2. | the fiber of this plant, manufactured into linen yarn for thread or woven fabrics. |
| 3. | any of various plants resembling flax. |
[Origin: bef. 900; ME; OE fleax; c. D, LG vlas, G Flachs]
] | Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
Flax
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| © 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |
flax
Audio Help (flāks) Pronunciation Key
(click for larger image in new window) n.
[Middle English, from Old English fleax; see plek- in Indo-European roots.] |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
flax
O.E. fleax "cloth made with flax, linen," from P.Gmc. *flakhsan (cf. O.Fris. flax, Ger. Flachs), probably from P.Gmc. base *fleh-, corresponding to PIE *plek- "to weave, plait" see ply (v.)). But some connect it with PIE *plak- (see flay) from the notion of "stripping" fiber to prepare it. Flaxen "made of flax" is from O.E. fleaxen; as "the color of flax" (usually with reference to hair) it is attested from 1523.
| Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper |
| flax | |
noun | |
| 1. | fiber of the flax plant that is made into thread and woven into linen fabric |
| 2. | plant of the genus Linum that is cultivated for its seeds and for the fibers of its stem |
| WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University. |
Flax
Flax\, n. [AS. fleax; akin to D. vlas, OHG. flahs, G. flachs, and prob. to flechten to braid, plait,m twist, L. plectere to weave, plicare to fold, Gr. ? to weave, plait. See Ply.]1. (Bot.) A plant of the genus Linum, esp. the L. usitatissimum, which has a single, slender stalk, about a foot and a half high, with blue flowers. The fiber of the bark is used for making thread and cloth, called linen, cambric, lawn, lace, etc. Linseed oil is expressed from the seed. 2. The skin or fibrous part of the flax plant, when broken and cleaned by hatcheling or combing. Earth flax (Min.), amianthus. Flax brake, a machine for removing the woody portion of flax from the fibrous. Flax comb, a hatchel, hackle, or heckle. Flax cotton, the fiber of flax, reduced by steeping in bicarbinate of soda and acidulated liquids, and prepared for bleaching and spinning like cotton. --Knight. Flax dresser, one who breaks and swingles flax, or prepares it for the spinner. Flax mill, a mill or factory where flax is spun or linen manufactured. Flax puller, a machine for pulling flax plants in the field. Flax wench. (a) A woman who spins flax. [Obs.] (b) A prostitute. [Obs.] --Shak. Mountain flax (Min.), amianthus. New Zealand flax (Bot.) See Flax-plant.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
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