Nearby Words

parfleche

[pahr-flesh, pahr-flesh]

par·fleche

[pahr-flesh, pahr-flesh]
noun
1.
a rawhide that has been dried after having been soaked in a solution of lye and water to remove the hair.
2.
an article or object, as a case, pouch, etc., made of such rawhide.

Origin:
1820–30; < Canadian French parflèche, equivalent to French par(er) to parry (see para-2) + flèche arrow
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To parfleche

:10

:09

:08

:07

:06

:05

:04

:03

:02

:01

Parfleche is always a great word to know.
So is bezoar. Does it mean:
a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison.
a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question.
Collins
World English Dictionary
parfleche (ˈpɑːflɛʃ)
 
n
1.  a sheet of rawhide that has been dried after soaking in lye and water to remove the hair
2.  an object, such as a case, made of this
 
[C19: from Canadian French, from French parer to ward off, protect + flèche arrow]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia

parfleche

tough, folded rawhide carrying bag made by the Plains Indians of North America; more loosely applied, the term also refers to many specialized rawhide articles. The Plains Indians had an abundant source of hides in the buffalo they hunted, but, as they were nomadic, they had little opportunity to tan the skins. Parfleche, or rawhide, was prepared by cleaning and dehairing the skin and then by stretching it and allowing it to dry in the sun. This process created a stiff but durable leather that was used for many items, including bags, thongs, and war shields

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

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
Cite This Source
Dictionary.com, LLC. Copyright © 2012. All rights reserved.
  • Please Login or Sign Up to use the Recent Searches feature