counterpane

[ koun-ter-peyn ]

See synonyms for counterpane on Thesaurus.com

nounOlder Use.

a quilt or coverlet for a bed; bedspread.

Origin of counterpane

1425–75; counter- + pane (in obsolete sense bedspread); replacing late Middle English counterpoynte<Middle French contre-pointe quilt, alteration (by association with contre-counter-) of cou(s)tepointe, coitepointe<Latin culcita puncta pricked pillow. See quilt, point

Other words from counterpane

coun·ter·paned, adjective

Words Nearby counterpane

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use counterpane in a sentence

She tore unconsciously at the counterpane, her fingers writhing against one another.
The Winning Clue | James Hay, Jr.
She twisted the fringe of the counterpane in her slender, white fingers, and she did not look at him.
Quin | Alice Hegan Rice
And the mark of the bloody hand on the counterpane, where it is dragged?
The Dark House | Georg Manville Fenn
When Heidi got into bed that night she found her old straw hat lying under the counterpane.
Heidi | Johanna Spyri
She spoke very languidly, and suffered Dixon to lay it on the counterpane before her, without putting out a hand to take it.
North and South | Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell

British Dictionary definitions for counterpane

counterpane

/ (ˈkaʊntəˌpeɪn) /

noun

another word for bedspread

Origin of counterpane

C17: from obsolete counterpoint (influenced by pane coverlet), changed from Old French coutepointe quilt, from Medieval Latin culcita puncta quilted mattress

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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