silk

[silk]

noun

1. the soft, lustrous fiber obtained as a filament from the cocoon of the silkworm.

2. thread made from this fiber.

3. cloth made from this fiber.

4. a garment of this cloth.

5. a gown of such material worn distinctively by a King's or Queen's Counsel at the English bar.

6. silks, the blouse and peaked cap, considered together, worn by a jockey or sulky driver in a race.

7. Informal.,  a parachute, especially one opened aloft.

8. any fiber or filamentous matter resembling silk, as a filament produced by certain spiders, the thread of a mollusk, or the like.

9. the hairlike styles on an ear of corn.

10. British Informal.

    1. a King's or Queen's Counsel.

    2. any barrister of high rank.

adjective

1. made of silk.

2. resembling silk; silky.

3. of or relating to silk.

verb (used without object)

1. (of corn) to be in the course of developing silk.

silk

/ sɪlk /

noun

1. the very fine soft lustrous fibre produced by a silkworm to make its cocoon

2. 1. thread or fabric made from this fibre

   2. ( as modifier )

      a silk dress

3. a garment made of this

4. a very fine fibre produced by a spider to build its web, nest, or cocoon

5. the tuft of long fine styles on an ear of maize

6. 1. the gown worn by a Queen's (or King's) Counsel

   2. informal,  a Queen's (or King's) Counsel

   3. to become a Queen's (or King's) Counsel

verb

1. (intr) (of maize) to develop long hairlike styles

silk

1. A fiber produced by silkworms to form cocoons. Silk is strong, flexible, and fibrous, and is essentially a long continuous strand of protein. It is widely used to make thread and fabric.

2. A substance similar to the silk of the silkworm but produced by other insect larvae or by spiders to spin webs.

Other Word Forms

• silklike adjective
• half-silk adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of silk¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English noun selk, seolk, solk, Old English sioloc, seol(o)c (cognate with Old Norse silki, Norwegian, Swedish, and Danish silke, but not found in other Germanic languages), by uncertain transmission from Latin sērica, noun use of neuter plural adjective sēricus, or from Greek sērikón “silk,” noun use of neuter of sērikós “silken,” literally, “Chinese,” derivative of Latin Sēres, Greek Sêres “the Chinese”; Germanic, Slavic ( Old Church Slavonic shelkŭ, Russian shëlk ) and Baltic ( Lithuanian šilkai ) all show unexplained change of r to l ); seric-

Word History and Origins

Origin of silk¹

Old English sioluc; compare Old Norse silki, Greek sērikon, Korean sir; all ultimately from Chinese ssǔ silk

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. take silk, to become a Queen's or King's Counsel.

2. hit the silk, to parachute from an aircraft; bail out.

see can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear; smooth as silk.

Example Sentences

One space, the first floor anteroom, is lined with red and gold silk, with centuries-old paintings hanging on the walls and an elaborately decorative fireplace standing beside a huge floor-to-ceiling window.

From BBC

When Lim began looking for locations, he walked into Oriental Silk on Beverly Boulevard, a silk fabric store that had been on the block since the 1970s.

From Los Angeles Times

Every time Karen Betlejewski visits the Smith River Community Pioneer Cemetery, she places silk flowers beside a simple granite headstone in the northeast corner.

From Los Angeles Times

He often mixed silk and wool or silk and linen for a softer alternative to the heavy, stiff gabardines and worsted wools that were typical for men’s suits and jackets.

From Los Angeles Times

Her eyes linger on the shelves of silks.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• fiber 
• taffeta 
• thread 
• tulle