scrim
[skrim]
- a cotton or linen fabric of open weave used for bunting, curtains, etc.
- Theater. a piece of such fabric used as a drop, border, or the like, for creating the illusion of a solid wall or backdrop under certain lighting conditions or creating a semitransparent curtain when lit from behind.
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Origin of scrim
First recorded in 1785–95; origin uncertain
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for scrim
Contemporary Examples
To my horror, he was romping with a girl on a white beach, a scrim of sand dusting her tan skin.
The endless succession of quotation marks is its own contrivance, a scrim between Shields and the world.
He layered a scrim of black chiffon over lingerie-style dresses in red, and he adorned a bare, purple slip dress with gems.
Historical Examples
Well, I was ready for any scrim of a shortage—I mean any sort of a scrimmage.
Frank Merriwell's RacesBurt L. Standish
She asked this question after she had shown the scrim curtains she had found and brought home with her.
The Daughter of the StorageWilliam Dean Howells
I've lost my check-book somewhere in the scrim, and so I wonder if you'd send her some money.
The Return of the SoldierRebecca West
Both of them, peering through the scrim curtains, saw a tall white figure disappear into the spring-house.
A Woman Named SmithMarie Conway Oemler
Take a square of scrim or Hardanger canvas eight inches large.
The Library of Work and Play: NeedlecraftEffie Archer Archer
scrim
- an open-weave muslin or hessian fabric, used in upholstery, lining, building, and in the theatre to create the illusion of a solid wall or to suggest haziness, etc, according to the lighting
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Word Origin
C18: origin unknown
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 scrim
n.
"upholstery lining," 1792, of unknown origin.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper