linen, a. and n.
(ˈlɪnɪn)
Forms: 1 l{iacu}nen, 1–8 linnen, 3–7 lynnen, (3 linn, linin, 4 lenyne, 5 lynand), 4–6 lyn(n)yn(e, (4 lynyng), 5–6 lynen, -ine, -on, 6–7 li-, lyn(n)ing, -yng(e, 3– linen.
[OE. l{iacu}nen, lī̆nnen = OFris. linnen (Du. linnen), OS. and OHG. lînîn (G. leinen):—OTeut. type *lînîno- f. *lîno{supm} flax: see line n.1 and -en4.]
A. adj. Made of flax. In mod. Eng. apprehended chiefly as an attributive use of the n., with the sense: Made of linen. † linen wings = sails.
| a 700 Epinal Gloss. 1081 Linnin ryhae. c 897 K. ælfred Gregory's Past. xiv. 82 Ðæt hræᵹl wæs beboden ðæt sceolde bion ᵹeworht of..twispunnenum twine linenum. c 1160 Hatton Gosp. John xix. 40 Hyo..be-wunden hine mid linene claðe. a 1225 Ancr. R. 418 Nexst fleshe ne schal mon werien no linene cloð. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 8962 Þis gode mold..gurde aboute hire middel a uair linne [v.r. linnene] ssete. 1340 Ayenb. 236 Linene kertel erþan hi by huyte ueleziþe him be-houeþ þet he by ybeate and y-wesse. 1375 Barbour Bruce xiii. 422 Thai..lynyng clothis had, but mair. c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints vii. (Jacobus Minor) 59 Lenyne clath he oysit ay. 1413 Pilgr. Sowle (Caxton) i. i. (1859) 1 She kevered it lappyng [it] in a clene lynnen clothe. 1466 Paston Lett. II. 270 For grey lynen cloth and sylk frenge for the hers. 1508 Dunbar Flyting w. Kennedie 224, I se him want ane sark, I reid ȝow, cummer, tak in your lynning clais. 1535 Coverdale Ezek. xliv. 18 They shal haue fayre lynnynge bonettes vpon their heades. 1571 Grindal Injunc. at York B iij, A comely and decent table,..with a faire linen clothe to lay vpon the same. c 1620 Fletcher & Massinger Trag. Barnavelt v. iii, Who Unbard the Havens that the floating Merchant, Might clap his lynnen wings up to the windes. 1660 Pepys Diary 24 May, Up, and made myself as fine as I could, with the linning stockings on, and wide canons. 1676 Hobbes Iliad ii. 485 A linen armour he wore on his breast. 1678 Wanley Wond. Lit. World v. iii. §8. 474/1 Sextus [I]..ordered..that Priests should minister in Linnen Surplices. 1719 W. Wood Surv. Trade 88 Our Returns are chiefly in Linnen and Linnen Yarn. 1759 Grainger Tibullus i. v. 17 And I nine Times, in linnen garbs array'd, In silent Night, nine Times to Trivia pray'd. 1808 Med. Jrnl. XIX. 328 Some persons..washed their children with cold water by means of a linen cloth. 1858 Simmonds Dict. Trade, Linen-yarn, spun flax. |
B. n. 1. a. Cloth woven from flax.
The explanation ‘cloth woven from flax
or hemp’, given by Johnson and copied in most subsequent Dicts., appears to be a mere blunder, founded on occasional loose uses (
cf. 3).
| 1362 Langl. P. Pl. A. i. 3 A louely ladi on leor In linnene I-cloþed. 1377 Ibid. B. Prol. 219 Wollewebsteres and weueres of lynnen. c 1450 J. Capgrave Chron. (Rolls) 62 In this same tyme was Linus Pope, whech ordeyned that women schuld with lynand cure her heer. c 1460 J. Russell Bk. Nurture 935 Looke þer be blanket cotyn or lynyn to wipe þe neþur ende. 1513 Bradshaw St. Werburge i. 2540 She neuer ware lynon by day or by nyght. 1535 Coverdale 1 Sam. ii. 18 The childe was gyrded with an ouer body cote of lynnen. 1557 N. T. (Genev.) Luke xvi. 19 There was a certayne ryche man w⊇ was clothed in purple and fyne lynnen. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. i. 93 Of linnine lykwyse thay maid wyd sarkis. 1662 Stillingfl. Orig. Sacr. ii. vii. §10 That other precept was made against wearing a garment of linnen and woollen, because [etc.]. 1695 Lond. Gaz. No. 3099/2 An Act for Burying in Scotch Linnen. 1747 Wesley Prim. Physic (1762) 69 Apply a Suppository of Linnen. 1768 Hume Ess., Balance Trade xxvii. 194 A tax on German linen encourages home manufactures. 1806 Forsyth Beauties Scotl. IV. 309 Large quantities..are..exported..in an unbleached state; that is, under the name of brown linen, and green linen. 1843 Hood Song of the Shirt iv, It is not linen you're wearing out, But human creatures' lives! 1864 Tennyson Aylmer's F. 659 For thine Fares richly, in fine linen. 1892 Labour Commission Gloss., Linen, cloth made from flax or tow. 1899 Daily News 16 Jan. 3/4 An article described as linen which was partially made of cotton. |
b. pl. Various kinds of linen; linen goods.
| 1748 Anson's Voy. ii. x. 238 The cottons from the Coromandel coast, make the European linnens almost useless. 1851 Illustr. Catal. Gt. Exhib. 1158 An assortment of unbleached linens. 1892 Daily News 30 Apr. 2/7 Dress linens keep firm in price. |
† c. fossil linen: a kind of asbestos. (
Cf. line n.1 1 a and
flax n. 5 b.)
Obs.| 1797 Encycl. Brit. (ed. 3) X. 83/2 Fossile Linen is a kind of amianthus, which consists of flexible, parallel, soft fibres,..celebrated for the uses to which it has been applied, of being woven, and forming an incombustible cloth. |
2. a. Something made of linen; a linen garment.
Obs. in
sing.; the
pl. is found in Scottish writers.
| 1566 in Peacock Eng. Ch. Furniture (1866) 137 All the Reste off the lenyns that belong to the papishe priste. 1724 R. Wodrow Life J. Wodrow (1828) 57 Her friend went into another room and put on clean linens. 1773 Johnson Let. to Mrs. Thrale 6 Sept., A very decent girl in a printed linen. 1864 Burton Scot Abr. II. ii. 184 A little bag, wherein were my linens and some books. 1891 M. M. Dowie Girl in Karp. 147 Dressed in..preternaturally unsullied linens, and a short sheepskin. |
† b. pl. The sails of a ship (
cf. linen wings in A).
| 1622 Fletcher Sea Voy. i. i, Farle up all her Linnens, and let her ride it out. |
3. collect. a. Garments or other articles made of linen; often by extension applied to garments normally or originally made of linen, even when other materials are actually used. Often
spec. = undergarments,
e.g. shirts; also
= bed-linen, table-linen.
to wash one's dirty linen at home: to say nothing in public about family affairs, disputes, or scandals.
to wash one's dirty linen in public: to discuss an essentially private matter,
esp. a dispute or scandal, in public.
| c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 334 Alle þei fled on rowe, in lynen white as milke. c 1460 J. Russell Bk. Nurture 876 Wayte hys lynnyn þat hit be clene. c 1489 Caxton Sonnes of Aymon xxi. 466 Lady, aryse and fette hym suche linnen as he nedeth. 1552 Bury Wills (Camden) 140 All my lynnen except my too best shirts. 1590 Shakes. Mids. N. iv. ii. 40 In any case let Thisby haue cleane linnen. 1607 Tourneur Rev. Trag. ii. ii, He and the Duchesse By night meete in their linnen. 1632 Lithgow Trav. x. 449 My Linnen, Letters, and Sacket was lying in my hostery. 1653 Walton Angler iii. 61 Lets go to that house, for the linnen looks white, and smels of Lavender. 1695 Congreve Love for L. ii. x, Miss Pru. I'm resolv'd I won't let Nurse put any more Lavender among my Smocks—ha, Cousin? Frail. Fie, Miss; amongst your Linnen, you must say—You must never say Smock. 1702 Lond. Gaz. No. 3809/5 A Party of 30 of Paul Diack's Hussars..took away the Linnen that was hanged out to dry upon the Palisades. 1731 Ld. Bathurst Let. 19 Apr. in Swift's Wks. (1841) II. 649 Washing your linen and mending it, darning your stockings, &c. 1802 M. Edgeworth Moral T. (1816) I. xvi. 132 He..bespoke a suit of clothes. He bought new linen. 1820 Keats Eve St. Agnes xxx, And still she slept an azure-lidded sleep, In blanched linen, smooth, and lavender'd. 1840 Marryat Poor Jack xxvi, Take our dirty linen on shore. 1867 Trollope Last Chron. Barset II. xliv. 2 There is nothing..so bad as washing one's dirty linen in public. 1877 R. J. More Under the Balkans xv. 216 The parents of the bride gave a present of homespun linen to the godfather and godmother. 1895 Globe 23 May 1 People who ought to wash their dirty linen at home will not be satisfied with a less public laundry than Piccadilly. 1931 Times 3 Aug. 9/1 If the Government had made tactful..representations..to the Holy See,..the whole matter could have been quietly settled without any washing of dirty linen in public. 1935 D. L. Sayers Gaudy Night iv. 80 Even if the poison campaign led to no open disaster..a washing of dirty linen in public was not calculated to do Shrewsbury [College] any good. 1972 Daily Tel. 3 May 16, I know it is not done to wash dirty medical linen in public. |
† b. A piece or pieces of linen,
esp. strips of linen for use as bandages. In
pl. graveclothes.
Obs.| 1598 Shakes. Merry W. iv. ii. 79 Mist. Ford. Go, go, sweet Sir Iohn: Mistriis Page and I will looke some linnen for your head. 1651–3 Jer. Taylor Serm. for Year (1678) 104 In a single Linnen [he] laid his honour'd head. 1653 S. Mewce Let. to Lady H. in Hatton Corr. (1878) I. 9 Lynnen to dresse the wounded men was required. 1653 H. More Antid. Ath. iii. viii. (1712) 111 The Family..gave out that he died..got him washed and laid Linens..handsomly about him. 1676 Hale Contempl. i. 121 The linnen that wrapped his body in one place, and the linnen that bound his head in another. 1689 Burnet Tracts I. 38 They were some of the Linnings in which Christ was wrapped. a 1796 Burns ‘O merry hae I been’ 11 Bless'd be the hour she cool'd in her linnens. |
c. Abbrev. linen-draper b.
| 1955 J. Phelan Tramping the Toby 223 Linen, a newspaper. 1962 R. Cook Crust on its Uppers i. 21 Everything they've ever read in a linen or a clever-clever book. |
4. attrib. and
Comb.:
a. simple
attrib., as
linen-closet,
† linen-loom,
linen-manufacture,
linen-paper,
linen-room,
linen-tape,
linen-thread,
linen-work.
b. objective, as
linen-keeper,
linen-printer,
linen-stainer,
linen-weaver,
† linen-webster;
linen-darning;
linen-making,
linen-wearing adjs. c. instrumental and parasynthetic, as
linen-fitted,
linen-suited,
linen-vestured adjs.| 1885 ‘M. Rutherford’ M. Rutherford's Deliverance iii. 41 She cared nothing for the *linen-closet, the spotless bed⁓hangings,..the true household gods of the respectable women of those days. 1955 W. Tucker Wild Talent xiv. 181 The butler..saw Paul's questioning glance at the other two doors. ‘The nearest one is a linen closet, sir,’ he said. |
| 1880 Plain Hints Needlework 88 An old harden sheet or apron is invaluable as practice for teaching *linen darning and patching. |
| 1896 Westm. Gaz. 8 Oct. 3/2 Woman..has purloined for her own use..the *linen-fitted flannel shirt. |
| Mod. Advt., Required, Position as Housekeeper, *Linen⁓keeper, Matron, or Lady-Help. |
| 1404 Nottingham Rec. II. 22 Item, j. *lynyn lome. 1468 Ripon Ch. Acts (Surtees) 133 Unum lynnen-lome. |
| 1692 Luttrell Brief Rel. (1857) II. 382 A great hearing at councill between the islands of Jersey and Guernsey and the *linnen manufacture corporation. |
| 1727–52 Chambers s.v. Paper, *Linen or European Paper is chiefly made of linen rags beaten to a pulp. 1875 Scrivener Lect. Text N. Test. 17 About the twelfth century linen paper came to be substituted. |
| 1772 Ann. Reg. 99 The prisoners were *linen-printers. |
| 1900 E. Glyn Visits of Elizabeth 33 Aunt Maria..said it was her day for seeing the *linen-room. |
| 1775 J. Adams Fam. Lett. (1876) 119, I think there is a particular occupation in Europe, called a paper-stainer or *linen-stainer. |
| 1762 Gentl. Mag. 185/1 A limpid stream..Where *linnen-suited Sal for water goes. |
| 1873 Young Englishwoman Mar. 150/2 A piece of *linen tape..keeps the buttons securely in place. 1880 E. Glaister Needlework v. 49 The letters are made in linen tape, unbleached, the yellower the better. |
| 1897 Sears, Roebuck Catal. 321/1 Marshall's *Linen Thread (100 yd. spools, black only). 1908 Westm. Gaz. 28 Dec. 5/2 The whole front is a mass of hand embroidery done in heavy linen-thread. 1975 Times 6 Mar. 7/6 The greatest problem with owning old lace is getting it repaired... An added problem is the difficulty of obtaining the hair-fine linen thread. |
| 1866 J. B. Rose Ovid's Metam. 30 The *linen-vestured race, Hold her in deepest reverence. |
| 1721 Strype Eccl. Mem. IV. iv. 49 *Linnin-wearing bishops. |
| 1474 in Cal. Pat. Rolls 14 Edw. IV, 22 Nov., *Lynnen wever. 1535 Coverdale 1 Chron. iv. 21 The kynred of y⊇ lynnenweuers in y⊇ house of Aszbea. 1708 Lond. Gaz. No. 4409/4 Thomas Tuttle, a Linen-Weaver. |
| 1642 in Rushw. Hist. Coll. iii. (1692) I. 680 Richard Parcivall of Kirkman-Shalme in the said County of Lancaster, *Linen-Webster. 1720 Lond. Gaz. No. 5889/4 George Malton, late of Woodkirk, Linnen-webster. |
| 1535 Coverdale 2 Chron. iii. 14 He made a vayle also of Yalow Sylke, scarlet, purple, *lynenworke. |
5. Special combinations:
† linen ball, some instrument of torture (
cf. lawn n.1 3 b);
linen basket, a receptacle for dirty clothing;
linen crash = crash n.2 1;
linen cupboard, a cupboard designed to hold bed-linen and table-linen; also, the contents of such a cupboard;
linen-decency nonce-use (see
quot.);
linen duster, a duster (see
duster 4 a) made of linen;
linen-fold = linen scroll;
linen-hall, a market-hall for the sale of linens;
linen-horse = horse n. 7 c;
linen lapper (see
quot.);
† linen-lifter, a man given to adultery;
† linen-man, a shirt-maker or linen-draper;
linen-mill (see
quot.);
linen-panel, one decorated with a linen-scroll;
linen-pattern = linen-scroll;
linen-press, a frame or receptacle for pressing or holding linen;
linen-prover, a microscope used to determine the fineness of a linen fabric by counting the threads;
linen-scroll (see
quot.);
linen shower [
shower n.1]
N. Amer., a party at which a bride-to-be is given presents of household linen, etc.;
linen tea, a tea arranged in order to provide house-linen for a crèche, day nursery, etc.;
† linen-teller = linen-prover;
† linen-wheel,
app. a kind of sewing machine.
| a 1630 Pathomachia iii. iv. 29 Vnlesse thou confesse..the Spanish Strappado, *Linnen Ball, and Peare of Confession shall torment thee. |
| 1907 Yesterday's Shopping (1969) 125/3 *Linen baskets. Barrel shape, buff wicker. 1970 G. F. Newman Sir, You Bastard viii. 239 He used his shirt to wipe his damp armpits, then threw it out on to the linen basket. |
| 1895 Montgomery Ward Catal. 24/2 *Linen crash or toweling. 1904 Sci. Amer. 21 May 409/3 The complainant, a manufacturer of linen crash, had adopted as a trade-mark the words ‘Stevens Crash’. |
| 1873 Young Englishwoman Mar. 155/1 The plain, economical housewife would do well to follow ‘Myra's’ plan of her *linen-cupboard. 1939 A. Thirkell Brandons ix. 234 She let Miss Morris help Nurse..to go through the linen cupboard and mark some new sheets. 1972 P. Ruell Red Christmas v. 48 The linen cupboard was, forecastably, full of linen. It was more of a room than a cupboard. |
| 1644 Milton Areop. (Arb.) 75, I fear yet this iron yoke of outward conformity hath left a slavish print upon our necks; the ghost of a *linnen decency yet haunts us. 1850 Whipple Ess. & Rev. (ed. 3) II. 12 All the conventional proprieties and linen decencies of language, he would find continually violated. |
| 1867 Galaxy III. 635 His cloak..or *linen duster..serves as a cover to hide the manipulations of his agile fingers. 1949 Chicago Daily News 11 Feb. 21/3 Grandma was a fashion plate in her smart linen duster for Sunday motoring. |
| 1891 Trans. Soc. Antiquaries 22 Jan. 225 The panels are ornamented with ‘*linen-fold’ patterns. |
| 1765 Wesley Jrnl. 4 May, I preached in the *Linen-Hall,..a large square, with piazzas on three sides of it. 1780 A. Young Tour Irel. I. 167 He..sells it at the linen-hall in Dublin. |
| 1845 R. Cobbold Hist. M. Catchpole II. xxv. 139 The large *linen-horses belonging to the gaol stood in the passage. 1906 Mrs. Beeton's Bk. Househ. Managem. lxix. 1810 Silks..should always be dried in the shade, on a linen-horse. |
| 1893 Labour Commission Gloss., *Linen Lappers, men who examine, measure, and fold the linen for the various markets. (Term used in the North of Ireland.) |
| 1652 Feltham Char. Low C. (1659) 24 They [Dutchwomen] are not so ready at this play as the English..nor are their Men such *linnen-lifters. |
| 1625 B. Jonson Staple of N. i. i, O Founder, no such matter, My Spurrier, and my Hatter, My *Linnen-man, and my Taylor. 1631 Massinger Emperor East i. ii, How low a new stamp'd courtier May vaile to..His linnen-man, and taylor. |
| 1727–52 Chambers Cycl. s.v. Mill, *Linen-Mills... Their use is, to scour linens, after their having been first cleansed when taken out of the lixivium, or lye. |
| 1886 Willis & Clark Cambridge I. 270 Lignis undulatis, that is, with undulated or wavy woodwork... The words probably denote what is now termed ‘*linen panels’. |
| 1850 Parker Gloss. Archit. s.v. Panel, One kind of ornament which was introduced towards the end of the Perpendicular style..consists of a series of straight mouldings..so arranged..as to represent the folds of linen, it is usually called the ‘*linen pattern’. |
| 1851 Mrs. Stowe Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852) I. xviii. 296 The store-room, the *linen-presses, the china-closet,..all went under an awful review. 1970 Canad. Antiques Collector June 4 (Advt.), Exceptional Pennsylvania walnut linen-press..Circa 1790. |
| 1894 Maskelyne Sharps & Flats 68 The mirror in this case is mounted somewhat after the fashion of a *linen-prover. |
| 1854 Fairholt Dict. Terms Art, *Linen-scroll, a peculiar style of decorative ornament, extensively used to fill panels in the latter part of the fifteenth, and during the sixteenth century; so termed from its resemblance to a small napkin folded in close convolutions all over its surface. |
| 1904 N.Y. Tribune 27 Oct. 7 The managers of the Home for the Friendless invite the public to a *linen shower and reception. 1921 Daily Colonist (Victoria, B.C.) 3 Apr. 8/3 A delightful linen shower was given in honor of Miss Dorothy Woods, Thursday evening at the home of Mrs. B. E. Lefevre. 1974 Evening Herald (Rock Hill, S. Carolina) 18 Apr. 9/4 Hostesses for a linen shower were Mrs. H. D. Long and Mrs. Arthur Snyder. |
| 1916 Yorks. Post 19 Apr. 4/7 The first crèche which held such a ‘*linen tea’... Yesterday's meeting was for the purpose of collecting house linen to furnish the place. 1948 Linen tea [see kitchen tea (kitchen n. 7)]. |
| 1797 Miers Fisher in Mem. Lit. & Philos. Soc. Manchester (1798) V. 316, I examined the..skin, with a glass which magnified considerably, and which is known in Ireland by the name of a *linen-teller. |
| 1638 J. Rous Diary (Camden) 85 He [a handless man] tooke three stitches in a cloathe with a *linnen⁓wheele (prepared with a turner's devise for the foote). |