habutai
(ˈhɑːbuːtaɪ)
Also -aye, -ae.
[Jap.]
A fine soft Japanese silk.
| [1822 F. Shoberl tr. Titsingh's Illustr. Japan 17 Tchouya followed, dressed in two robes of light blue, made of the stuff called fabita, with his hands tied behind him.] 1895 Montgomery Ward Catal. 12/3 Habutai Silk..is a very soft, light weight of silk of Japanese make. 1902 Encycl. Brit. XXIX. 725/1 Pictures so elaborate and..accurate as those produced by the yuzen process on silk crape or habutaye. 1921 Daily Colonist (Victoria, B.C.) 7 Apr. 13/6 Black Waists of heavy quality Habutai silk, with tucked fronts and neat collars. 1931 Stud. Eng. Lit. (Tokyo) XI. 515 Habutae, a kind of silk. This word is regularly used in newspaper advertisements in England. 1950 ‘Mercury’ Dict. Textile Terms 254/2 A pure dye spotproof silk of the Habutai order, finished with a little lustre. |