wool

[wool]

noun

1. the fine, soft, curly hair that forms the fleece of sheep and certain other animals, characterized by minute, overlapping surface scales that give it its felting property.

2. fabrics and garments of such wool.

3. yarn made of such wool.

4. any of various substances used commercially as substitutes for the wool of sheep or other animals.

5. any of certain vegetable fibers, as cotton or flax, used as wool, especially after preparation by special process vegetable wool.

6. any finely fibrous or filamentous matter suggestive of the wool of sheep.

   glass wool; steel wool.

7. any coating of short, fine hairs or hairlike processes, as on a caterpillar or a plant; pubescence.

8. Informal.,  the human hair, especially when short, thick, and crisp.

wool

/ wʊl /

noun

1. the outer coat of sheep, yaks, etc, which consists of short curly hairs

2. yarn spun from the coat of sheep, etc, used in weaving, knitting, etc

3. 1. cloth or a garment made from this yarn

   2. ( as modifier )

      a wool dress

4. any of certain fibrous materials

   glass wool

   steel wool

5. informal,  short thick curly hair

6. a tangled mass of soft fine hairs that occurs in certain plants

7. confirmed in one's beliefs or opinions

8. to deceive or delude someone

Other Word Forms

• woollike adjective
• nonwool adjective
• wool-like adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of wool¹

before 900; Middle English wolle, Old English wull ( e ), cognate with Dutch wol, German Wolle, Old Norse ull, Gothic wulla; akin to Latin lāna, Sanskrit ūrṇā, Welsh gwlân wool, Latin vellus fleece, Greek oúlos woolly

Word History and Origins

Origin of wool¹

Old English wull; related to Old Frisian, Middle Dutch wulle, Old High German wolla (German Wolle ), Old Norse ull, Latin lāna and vellus fleece

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. dyed in the wool, inveterate; confirmed.

   a dyed in the wool sinner.

2. pull the wool over someone's eyes, to deceive or delude someone.

   The boy thought that by hiding the broken dish he could pull the wool over his mother's eyes.

3. all wool and a yard wide, genuine; excellent; sincere.

   He was a real friend, all wool and a yard wide.

see all wool and a yard wide; pull the wool over someone's eyes.

Example Sentences

“How can that be a sheep? I see no wool. Have you any wool?”

Read more on Literature

Within minutes of waking, the tangle of problems that had flummoxed Penelope so thoroughly the previous evening had somehow sorted themselves into neat skeins of wool, as it were.

Read more on Literature

Faribault Mill, one of the last vertical wool and cotton mills in the country, partnered with Anishinaabe artist Madison Rae Holler to create a series of blankets honoring traditional folklore and storytelling.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Researchers have found that toothpaste made from keratin, a protein naturally present in hair, skin, and wool, could both protect and repair damaged teeth while offering a sustainable alternative to traditional dental treatments.

Read more on Science Daily

"We need to wrap him in cotton wool and keep him going for 38 games."

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• cashmere 
• fleece 
• fur 
• hair 
• mohair 
• tweed 
• yarn