fabric

American  

[fab-rik] / ˈfæb rɪk /

noun

1. a cloth made by weaving, knitting, or felting fibers.

   woolen fabrics.

2. the texture of the woven, knitted, or felted material.

   cloth of a soft, pliant fabric.

3. framework; structure.

   the fabric of society.

4. a building; edifice.

5. the method of construction.

6. the act of constructing, especially of a church building.

7. the maintenance of such a building.

8. Petrography. the spatial arrangement and orientation of the constituents of a rock.

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fabric British  

/ ˈfæbrɪk /

noun

1. any cloth made from yarn or fibres by weaving, knitting, felting, etc

2. the texture of a cloth

3. a structure or framework

   the fabric of society

4. a style or method of construction

5. rare a building

6. the texture, arrangement, and orientation of the constituents of a rock

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Etymology

Origin of fabric

1475–85; (< Middle French fabrique ) < Latin fabrica craft, especially metalworking or building, workshop. See forge ¹

Explanation

Fabric is what something is made from, especially clothing. Silk is a common fabric, but you can also talk about "the fabric of society." The most common use of fabric is for clothes: for example, denim is the fabric used to make jeans. All clothes are made of some type or combination of fabrics. The basic structure of a building or a vehicle can also be called fabric, and non-physical things can be represented as fabric too. Metaphorically, you could say honesty is part of the fabric of friendship, or love is part of the fabric of family. Fabric is always the foundation or essence of something.

Example Sentences

“When I first saw myself as a sculpture in the work, I thought about representation — how it matters and what that image will sow into the fabric of our youth.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2026

Standing 36 feet tall, 57 feet long and 40 feet wide at final build, the piece was shipped to the festival in five loads to keep the fabric as pristine as possible.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 10, 2026

Nittobo, a Japanese textile company that produces critical materials for AI hardware, is raising prices for its T-glass fabric amid material shortages and surging production costs.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 10, 2026

The commissioned portraits of Parsi elite "reflect the patronage networks and social aspirations of the community" which formed the mercantile fabric of the city in the early 20th century.

From BBC • Apr. 3, 2026

At first, she thought of taking the skeleton’s dress and making a bag out of it, but one tug on the fabric was enough to tear it.

From Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack

Related Words

• fiber
• goods
• textile
• texture