floss
Americannoun
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the cottony fiber yielded by the silk-cotton tree.
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silk filaments with little or no twist, used in weaving as brocade or in embroidery.
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any silky, filamentous matter, as the silk of corn.
verb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
noun
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the mass of fine silky fibres obtained from cotton and similar plants
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any similar fine silky material, such as the hairlike styles and stigmas of maize or the fibres prepared from silkworm cocoons
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untwisted silk thread used in embroidery, etc
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See dental floss
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of floss
1750–60; probably < French floche, as in soie floche floss silk, Old French flosche down, velvet pile (of uncertain origin)
Explanation
Floss is what you use to clean between your teeth. Dental floss is a strong, thick thread that can reach small pieces of food in tight spaces. Your dentist will be happy with you if you really do use floss every day — and to do this is to floss. Other types of floss are soft threads with different uses: some floss is made for stitching or embroidering designs on fabric, and the strands of silk spun by a silkworm are also floss. The origin of this word is uncertain, but one guess connects it to floche, "tuft of wool" in French.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
I only came across a few stray hairs and watched one guest floss on my brief stay.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 6, 2026
The fabric pumpkins are then finished off with threaded floss and a fabric stem.
From Salon • Oct. 30, 2025
On a Thursday evening in late summer, Ann and Raymond Crandon from Merthyr Tydfil queued alongside the candy floss and ice cream stalls with their granddaughter, Lily, and shared fond memories of the fair.
From BBC • Oct. 4, 2025
Is it possible the man is against not just fluoride but also toothbrushes and floss?
From Slate • Jul. 15, 2025
He was dressed in fresh linen, the light falling upon his white hair as upon silk floss.
From "Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
