linen

American  

[lin-uhn] / ˈlɪn ən /

noun

1. fabric woven from flax yarns.

2. Often linens. bedding, tablecloths, shirts, etc., made of linen cloth or a more common substitute, as cotton.

3. yarn made of flax fiber.

4. thread made of flax yarns.

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adjective

1. made of linen.

   a linen jacket.

idioms

1. wash one's dirty linen in public, to discuss in public one's private scandals, disagreements, or difficulties.

linen British  

/ ˈlɪnɪn /

noun

1. 1. a hard-wearing fabric woven from the spun fibres of flax

   2. ( as modifier )

      a linen tablecloth

2. yarn or thread spun from flax fibre

3. clothes, sheets, tablecloths, etc, made from linen cloth or from a substitute such as cotton

4. See linen paper

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linen More Idioms  

1. see wash one's dirty linen in public.

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Other Word Forms

• half-linen
  adjective
• lineny
  adjective
• underlinen
  noun

Etymology

Origin of linen

before 900; Middle English lin ( n ) en (noun, adj.), Old English linnen, līnen (adj.) made of flax, equivalent to līn flax (< Latin līnum; see line ²) + -en -en ²

Explanation

Linen is a type of fabric that's sturdy, cool, and absorbent. If you're going to a summer wedding, you should consider wearing a white linen suit. If you're going on a job interview, it's probably not such a great idea. Linen is frequently used in summery dresses and shirts, curtains, bags, pillowcases and sheets, towels. and tablecloths. It's heavy and substantial but stays breathable and fresh when you wear it on a hot day. Linens is sometimes used to mean "bedding or towels," or the things you'd keep in a linen closet. Linen comes from the Old English word linin, "made of flax," from lin, "flax fibers or linen thread."

Example Sentences

“A good pair of denim and a linen blazer over that would be really cute. Whites also look good with clay.”

From The Wall Street Journal • May 15, 2026

Last year the trademark was registered in more than a dozen product categories in Australia, including cookware and table linen.

From BBC • Apr. 18, 2026

Tolles crafted bespoke window treatments from secondhand materials: linen-like Roman blinds in the kitchen, white linen drapes on top of woven bamboo blinds on the patio doors and velvet drapes in the bedroom.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 4, 2026

But he warned: "The linen backing is weakened by age, and the wool embroidery threads are vulnerable to stress."

From Barron's • Jan. 15, 2026

Brother Luke brought small slender pieces of pine and showed Robin how to smooth them into mast and bowsprit, then found scraps of linen for sails and pieces of yarn for rigging.

From "The Door in the Wall" by Marguerite de Angeli

Related Words

• bedding
• cloth
• lingerie