linoleum

[ li-noh-lee-uh m ]

/ lɪˈnoʊ li əm /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR linoleum ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a hard, washable floor covering formed by coating burlap or canvas with linseed oil, powdered cork, and rosin, and adding pigments to create the desired colors and patterns.

any floor covering similar to this.

Nearby words

Origin of linoleum

1863; < Latin līn(um) flax, linen + oleum oil; formerly trademark

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for linoleum

Painted arrows on the linoleum floor direct you where to stand in line.
Adam Hochschild on Keeping Company With His Dying Father|Adam Hochschild|June 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In being gutted by a linoleum knife, that dark image that Hannibal had instilled in him had been freed.
Hugh Dancy on ‘Hannibal’s’ Brilliantly Batsh*t Finale and the Future of Will Graham|Marlow Stern|May 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Her door is the one at the far end of a linoleum hall, nearest the street.
Five Great Literary Homes, From Pemberley to Ruth’s||March 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He would slap me, hard, one time knocking me to the linoleum floor.
Raped by a Teacher: One Woman’s Tragic Past at the Horace Mann School|Abigail Pesta|September 19, 2012|DAILY BEAST

"This will not stop the public," he says, as grown men weep around him and harsh lights beam onto the linoleum.
Inside Bahrain's Bloody Revolt|Karen Leigh|February 17, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Imagine a large table formed of wood, the upper surface covered with linoleum.
Marvels of Scientific Invention|Thomas W. Corbin
We went into the bedroom and, gazing on the linoleum, my enthusiasm returned to me.
Once a Week|Alan Alexander Milne
The floor of the pavilions is a kind of linoleum made of sawdust and cement, and is covered with palm mats.
Turkish Prisoners in Egypt|Various
A floor covered with linoleum is more easily kept clean than a plain wood floor.
Common Science|Carleton W. Washburne
There was no waste-paper basket in the house, and a great deal of linoleum.
The Second Fiddle|Phyllis Bottome

British Dictionary definitions for linoleum

linoleum

/ (lɪˈnəʊlɪəm) /

noun

a sheet material made of hessian, jute, etc, coated under pressure and heat with a mixture of powdered cork, linseed oil, rosin, and pigment, used as a floor coveringOften shortened to: lino

Word Origin for linoleum

C19: from Latin līnum flax + oleum oil

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

Word Origin and History for linoleum

linoleum

1860, coined by English inventor Frederick Walton (1837-1928), from Latin linum "flax, linen" (see linen) + oleum "oil" (see oil (n.)). Originally, a preparation of solidified linseed oil used to coat canvas for making floor coverings; the word was applied to the flooring material itself after 1878. The Linoleum Manufacturing Company was formed 1864.

linoleum

noun

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of linoleum

Examples from the Web for linoleum

linoleum

noun

Word Origin for linoleum

linoleum