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Wainscoted

 - 3 dictionary results

wain⋅scot

[weyn-skuht, -skot, -skoht] noun, verb, -scot⋅ed, -scot⋅ing or (especially British) -scot⋅ted, -scot⋅ting.
–noun
1. wood, esp. oak and usually in the form of paneling, for lining interior walls.
2. the lining itself, esp. as covering the lower portion of a wall.
3. a dado, esp. of wood, lining an interior wall.
4. British. oak of superior quality and cut, imported from the Baltic countries for fine woodwork.
–verb (used with object)
5. to line the walls of (a room, hallway, etc.) with or as if with woodwork: a room wainscoted in oak.

Origin:
1325–75; ME < MLG or MD wagenschot, equiv. to wagen wain + schot (< ?)
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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wain·scot   (wān'skət, -skŏt', -skōt')   
n.  
  1. A facing or paneling, usually of wood, applied to the walls of a room.

  2. The lower part of an interior wall when finished in a material different from that of the upper part.

tr.v.   wain·scot·ed or wain·scot·ted, wain·scot·ing or wain·scot·ting, wain·scots
To line or panel (a room or wall) with wainscoting.

[Middle English, from Middle Dutch waghenscot : perhaps waghen, wagen, wagon (from the quality of wood used for carriagework); see wagon + scot, partition; see skeud- in Indo-European roots.]
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

wainscot 
1352, "imported oak of superior quality," probably from M.Du. or M.Flem. waghenscote "superior quality oak wood, board used for paneling" (though neither of these is attested as early as the Eng. word), related to M.L.G. wagenschot (1389), from waghen (see wagon) + scote "partition, crossbar." So called perhaps because the wood originally was used for wagon building and coachwork. Meaning "panels lining the walls of rooms" is recorded from 1548. Wainscoting is from 1580.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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