Dictionary.com
definitions
  • synonyms

sackcloth

[sak-klawth, -kloth]
See more synonyms for sackcloth on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. sacking.
  2. coarse cloth worn as a sign of mourning or penitence.
Show More
Idioms
  1. in sackcloth and ashes, in a state of repentance or sorrow; contrite: She would be in sackcloth and ashes for days over every trifling error she made.
Show More

Origin of sackcloth

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at sack1, cloth
Related formssack·clothed, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for sackcloth

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

British Dictionary definitions for sackcloth

sackcloth

noun
  1. coarse cloth such as sacking
  2. garments made of such cloth, worn formerly to indicate mourning or penitence
  3. sackcloth and ashes a public display of extreme grief, remorse, or repentance
Show More
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 sackcloth

n.

penitential or grieving garb, late 13c., literally "cloth of which sacks are made," from sack (n.1) + cloth. In the Biblical sense it was of goats' or camels' hair, the coarsest possible clothing.

Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper