a strong, coarse fiber used for making burlap, gunny, cordage, etc., obtained from two East Indian plants, Corchorus capsularis and C. olitorius, of the linden family.
either of these plants.
any plant of the same genus.
either of two Old World tropical yellow-flowered herbaceous plants, Corchorus capsularis or C. olitorius, cultivated for their strong fibre: family Tiliaceae
this fibre, used in making sacks, rope, etc
First recorded in 1740–50, jute is from the Bengali word jhuṭo
Jute is a very long fiber that comes from a plant and is used to make rugs, ropes, and other things. Jute twine feels coarse and rough, and is very strong. Jute is useful because of its length and cheapness — it provides an easy way to make an inexpensive sack or floor mat. If you've ever planted a small tree, you've probably uncovered its roots from their jute wrapping first, and if you've bought a five-pound bag of rice or sugar, it most likely came in a rough jute bag. Jute comes from the Bengali word jhuto, from the Sanskrit root juta-s, "twisted hair."
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Ms. Rizer begins in a peasant shift of woven jute and ends, after seven layers and 154 pounds of increasing Tolstoyan grandeur, cocooned in a wintry mantle of taupe.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2025
Made from jute, a durable and eco-friendly material, each rug integrates these natural elements.
From BBC ● Nov. 2, 2024
“Give yourself a hardworking floor, rather than something that’s stylish or pretty. You can always throw a jute rug over it.”
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 19, 2024
The performance ended with Vargas dressing Argote in a traditional jute garment she’d woven and playing a singing bowl for a brief sound bath.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2023
But Baba describes his ancestral jute farm with bright eyes: coconut and mango trees, perfect for a small boy to climb; a sparkling pond full of tasty fish; lush fields, green after the monsoon.
From "You Bring the Distant Near" by Mitali Perkins
Jute sacks - used to transport cocoa, rice and charcoal - were draped over the National Theatre in Accra, Ghana's capital city.
From BBC ● Apr. 19, 2024
Jute also provides a longer stream of income to farmers because they can first sell its leaves as a vegetable.
From New York Times ● Oct. 10, 2022
Jute mill owners eventually found a way to make even more money: They moved the business to India, closer to the fiber’s source.
From Washington Post ● Sep. 30, 2022
Angle, Saxon, and Jute tribes from what is today northwestern Germany and southern Denmark “came over into the island, and they began to increase so much, that they became terrible to the natives.”
From Science Magazine ● Sep. 21, 2022
Jute farms and dairy farms have something in common.
From "You Bring the Distant Near" by Mitali Perkins
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.
