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Honan

[hoh-nan; Chinese hœ-nahn]
noun
  1. Wade-Giles. Henan.
  2. (usually lowercase) Textiles.
    1. a pongee fabric made from the filaments of the wild silkworm.
    2. a lustrous fabric simulating pongee and woven from fibers other than silk.
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Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for honan

Historical Examples

  • The largest is that at Honan, the southern suburb of Canton.

    Architecture

    Thomas Roger Smith

  • "Catty Honan," cried Mary, with a gesture to enforce silence.

  • He peered into the stinking wells of Honan where women were cutting their own throats.

    Athalie

    Robert W. Chambers

  • The danger to those dear to us, touring in Honan, was very great.

  • We visited the Temple of Honan, a place of great sanctity to the natives.

    Due West

    Maturin Murray Ballou

British Dictionary definitions for honan

honan

noun
  1. (sometimes capital) a silk fabric of rough weave
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Word Origin

C20: from Honan, former name of Henan, where it is made

Honan

noun
  1. a variant transliteration of the Chinese name for Henan
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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