candle-wick
(ˈkænd(ə)lˌwɪk)
[OE. candel-weoca: see wick.]
1. a. The wick of a candle. Also attrib.
| c 1000 ælfric Voc. in Wr.-Wülcker 154 Funalia, uel funes, candelweoca. 1483 Cath. Angl. 53 A Candylweke, lichinus, lichinum. 1576 Newton tr. Lemnie's Complex. (1633) 125 As Oyle doth nourish the flame in the Candlewike. 1611 Cotgr., Emmecher, to furnish with a match or candle-weeke. 1777 Howard Prisons Eng. (1780) 397 The Keeper..employs the prisoners in spinning candle-wick. 1880 Browning Clive 129 Pray me trim your candle-wick! |
† b. candlewick mullein, a name of the Great Mullein or Hag-taper, Verbascum Thapsus, the leaves and stalks having been used for wicks. Obs.
| 1597 Gerard Herbal cclvii. §3. 631 Candle weeke Mullein hath large, broade, and woollie leaues. 1611 Cotgr., Mescheniere, candle-weeke Mullein. |
2. As one word. A soft material, usually cotton yarn, used to produce a tufted surface, also called candlewicking; material embroidered with tufts of this yarn. Also attrib.
| 1930 Sears Catal. Fall 357 Candlewick Embroidery is a popular vogue in needlework. A candlewick tufted bedspread. 1934 Archit. Rev. LXXVI. 183 Candlewick work..is the apotheosis of the spot [design], consisting of blobs of fluffy wool stuck on to a material. 1939 M. B. Picken Lang. of Fashion 18/2 Candlewicking, tuftings of threads to give a napped surface to fabric. 1951 Good Housek. Home Encycl. 152/2 Tweeds, folk weave, and candlewick..provide a wide range of surface-texture. 1958 P. Mortimer Daddy's gone A-Hunting xx. 119 Her candlewick dressing-gown. |