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tweed

1 American  
[tweed] / twid /

noun

  1. a coarse wool cloth in a variety of weaves and colors, either hand-spun and handwoven in Scotland or reproduced, often by machine, elsewhere.

  2. tweeds, garments made of this cloth.

  3. a paper having a rough surface, used especially for certain photographic prints.

Tweed 2 American  
[tweed] / twid /

noun

  1. William Marcy Boss Tweed, 1823–78, U.S. politician.

  2. a river flowing E from S Scotland along part of the NE boundary of England into the North Sea. 97 miles (156 km) long.

  3. a male given name.

tweed 1 British  
/ twiːd /

noun

    1. a thick woollen often knobbly cloth produced originally in Scotland

    2. ( as modifier )

      a tweed coat

  2. (plural) clothes made of this cloth, esp a man's or woman's suit

  3. informal (plural) trousers

"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
Tweed 2 British  
/ twiːd /

noun

  1. a river in SE Scotland and NE England, flowing east and forming part of the border between Scotland and England, then crossing into England to enter the North Sea at Berwick. Length: 156 km (97 miles)

"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

Etymology

Origin of tweed

1835–45; apparently back formation from Scots tweedling twilling (now obsolete) < ?

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Across the aisle, a young man with shaggy hair and a tweed blazer noticed the book on my lap.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 5, 2026

"I wanted to see whether, when you strip away the usual Chanel signatures - the tweed, the jewelled buttons - you can still get to that essence," he told WWD.

From BBC • Jan. 29, 2026

Costelloe often used traditional Irish fabrics and textiles in his designs, including Irish linen and tweed.

From BBC • Nov. 22, 2025

Another is Harris tweed, the manufacturer of a fabric handwoven in the Outer Hebrides, which has risen from near death and now employs hundreds, selling its products all over the world.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 14, 2025

I take my usual chair, the gray tweed perfectly molded to the shape of my body.

From "Internment" by Samira Ahmed

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.