cloth

[klawth, kloth]

noun

plural

cloths 

1. a fabric formed by weaving, felting, etc., from wool, hair, silk, flax, cotton, or other fiber, used for garments, upholstery, and many other items.

2. a piece of such a fabric for a particular purpose.

   an altar cloth.

3. the particular attire of any profession, especially that of the clergy.

4. the cloth, the clergy.

   men of the cloth.

5. Nautical.

   1. one of the lengths of canvas or duck of standard width sewn side by side to form a sail, awning, or tarpaulin.

   2. any of various pieces of canvas or duck for reinforcing certain areas of a sail.

   3. a number of sails taken as a whole.

6. Obsolete.,  a garment; clothing.

adjective

1. of or made of cloth.

   She wore a cloth coat trimmed with fur.

2. clothbound.

cloth

/ klɒθ /

noun

1. 1. a fabric formed by weaving, felting or knitting wool, cotton, etc

   2. ( as modifier )

      a cloth bag

2. a piece of such fabric used for a particular purpose, as for a dishcloth

3. 1. the clothes worn by a clergyman

   2. the clergy

4. obsolete,  clothing

5. nautical any of the panels of a sail

6. a piece of coloured fabric, used on the stage as scenery

7. a garment in a traditional non-European style

Other Word Forms

• clothlike adjective
• undercloth noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of cloth¹

before 900; Middle English cloth, clath cloth, garment, Old English clāth; cognate with Dutch kleed, German Kleid

Word History and Origins

Origin of cloth¹

Old English clāth; related to Old Frisian klēth, Middle High German kleit cloth, clothing

Idioms and Phrases

see out of whole cloth; sackcloth and ashes.

Example Sentences

"When I got home I checked my skin and it was peeling. We wore protective gear, white cloth overalls, but the chemicals would still pass through them. They would make the fabric stiff."

Read more on BBC

They visit artisans at work making tie-dye cloth in nearby Arimatsu, a village that has been perfecting the art of dyeing fabrics in intricate patterns for 400 years.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Students at the Busan Institute of Science and Technology carefully draped a mannequin in traditional Korean funeral cloth, smoothing the fabric as if over real skin, before gently lowering it into a coffin.

Read more on Barron's

Very gently, the robot lifted a fold of cloth and revealed the sleeping goose.

Read more on Literature

“The precious bits of cloth folded away in a small trunk like an abandoned trousseau, the books of my life, the medals in their cases.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• cotton 
• goods 
• material 
• stuff