▪ I. eyelet, n.
(ˈaɪlɪt)
Forms: 4 oilet, 5 oylette, olyet, -tte, 7 eielet, eylet, 7– eyelet.
[ME. oilet, a. Fr. œillet, dim. of œil eye: the mod. form is influenced by association with eye and -let.]
1. a. A small round hole in cloth, sail-cloth, etc., worked like a button-hole for the passage of a lace, ring, or rope; also eyelet-hole. b. A short metal tube, having its ends flattened for the same purpose.
| 1382 Wyclif Ex. xxvi. 5 The curtyn shal haue fifti oiletis in either parti. 1611 Speed Hist. Gt. Brit. ix. xv. §9 At euery Eylet the Needle left hanging by the silke. 1627 Capt. Smith Seaman's Gram. v. 23 Drawing a rope thorow a blocke or oylet to runne vp and down. a 1764 Lloyd To G. Colman, Peeping the curtains eyelet through. |
| transf. 1805 Wordsw. Prelude vii. Wks. (1888) 288/1 Winding up his mouth..into an orifice..a lurking eyelet, small and only not invisible. |
2. An aperture or loophole for observation; rarely for the discharge of missiles.
| c 1440 Promp. Parv., Olyet, hole yn in a walle. c 1450 Lonelich Grail xiv. 630 Forto han smeten him..Thorwh the oylettes of his helm. 1848 Thackeray Van. Fair lxiii, A woman..with a black mask on, through the eyelets of which her eyes twinkled strangely. 1851 Turner Dom. Archit. I. vii. 336 In which there are loop-holes or eylets for arrows. 1858 Bushnell Nat. & Supernat. iii. (1864) 65 Eyelet of observation. |
3. a. A small eye (lit. and fig.) spec. in a butterfly's wing: an ocellus; = eye n.1 12 d.
| 1799 W. Taylor in Monthly Mag. VII. 139 With eyelets, by the fat flesh squeez'd together. 1832 J. Rennie Butterfl. & M. 23 The Eyed Hawk Wings..; second pair rosy at the base, the tips much paler, with a large blue eyelet near the posterior angle. 1832 T. Brown Bk. Butterfl. & M. (1834) I. 120 The wings are angular,..with large compound eyelets, reddish in the centre. 1835 Tait's Mag. II. 379 Wicked eyelets, wicked mouth, Face me fairly, tell me truth! 1848 Hardy in Proc. Berw. Nat. Club II. 335 Eyelets (ocelli) two, small, black. 1876 Hardy Hand Ethelb. II. xlvi. 233 They could discern eyelets of light. |
† b. A small eye or bud of a plant or tree. Obs.
| 1600 Surflet Countrie Farme vi. vi. 737 If it [the vine stock] haue put forth any eielet, you may rub it off with your finger. 1616 Surfl. & Markh. Country Farme 348 Shoots..full of sappe, hauing grosse and thicke-set eyelets. |
4. attrib. and Comb., as eyelet-punch, eyelet-ring, etc.; spec. designating stitching or embroidery composed of eyelets giving an open-work effect (see also quot. 1909).
| 1864 Webster, Eyelet-ring, a small ring of metal, ivory, &c. inserted in an eyelet to prevent wearing. 1874 Knight Dict. Mech., Eyelet-punch, a device used at the desk for attaching papers together by eyeleting. 1880 Catal. Tool Wks. Sheffield 80 Best bright Eyelet Closing Pliers. 1883 Harper's Mag. 813/2 It is a mere eyelet slit of a strait. 1909 Cent. Dict. Suppl., Eyelet-stitch, in sewing-machine work, the method of placing the stitches in radial lines round an eyelet-hole or over a metal reinforcing ring or eyelet. 1911 Daily Colonist (Victoria, B.C.) 30 Apr. 3/4 (Advt.), Eyelet embroidery is an effective feature. 1932 D. C. Minter Mod. Needlecraft 52/1 Eyelet stitch..may be used as a background stitch. Ibid. 253/1 Eyelet or English embroidery as decoration. 1960 B. Snook English Hist. Embroidery 53 Other shirts..have four-sided stitch and eyelet stitch on the front opening. |
▪ II. eyelet, v.
(ˈaɪlɪt)
[f. prec. n.]
trans. To make eyelets in: lit. and fig.
| 1832 Gen. P. Thompson Exerc. (1842) II. 323 The cockneys..eyeleted the royalists at Brentford in 1642. |
Hence ˈeyeleted ppl. a. ˈeyeleting vbl. n.
| 1874 Knight Dict. Mech., Eyeleting-machine, a machine for attaching eyelets to garments and other objects. 1885 Newhall in Harper's Mag. Jan. 286/2 Self-feeding eyeleting machine, foot-power. 1891 Ch. Times 27 Feb. 209/3 Advt., [A card]..eyeleted for hanging up. Mod. Eyeleted luggage-labels. |