piece goods

American  

plural noun

1. goods, especially fabrics, sold at retail by linear measure.

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piece goods British  

plural noun

1. Also called: yard goods.  goods, esp fabrics, made in standard widths and lengths

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Etymology

Origin of piece goods

First recorded in 1655–65

Example Sentences

This depression Mr. Knickerbocker dramatized thus: in 1913 exports of British cotton piece goods exceeded seven billion square yards; last year they were less than two and one-half billion square yards!

From Time Magazine Archive

April imports of piece goods were reported as 165,000,000 yd. as against 215,000,000 yd. for April 1929.

From Time Magazine Archive

The cotton spinning of individual Gandhi followers was said to be seriously affecting the British cotton piece goods trade � In Japan, cotton mills were curtailing production.

From Time Magazine Archive

In Thailand, Japanese cotton piece goods had been virtually driven from the market by Chinese prices, which were as much as 15% lower.

From Time Magazine Archive

She had once gone to the ladies’ room in the morning and been found by Mr. Gonzalez late that afternoon asleep on a pile of piece goods in the factory loft.

From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole