# cloth

Pronunciation: US say "KLAWTH" /klɔθ/; UK say "KLOTH" /klɒθ/

## Noun

1. Fabric made of woven, knitted, or felted fibers, used for clothing, decoration, cleaning, or other practical purposes.
   - Simple: Material made by weaving or knitting threads, or by pressing fibers together, used for clothes, cleaning, and more.
   - _The tailor ordered several yards of fine cloth for the suits._
   - _Workers stretched the cloth across the wooden frame to dry._
2. A piece of fabric set aside for a particular use, such as cleaning, drying, or polishing.
   - Simple: A piece of fabric used for one job, such as cleaning or drying.
   - _He dampened a cloth and dabbed at the stain on the carpet._
   - _The mechanic wiped his hands on an oily cloth._
3. A tablecloth, especially one spread over a table before a meal and removed afterward.
   - Simple: A large piece of fabric spread over a table before a meal.
   - _The waiter smoothed the white cloth before laying out the silverware._
   - _Servants cleared the cloth once the guests had finished dining._
4. The clergy collectively; the profession of ordained religious ministers.
   - Simple: The job and group of priests in a church.
   - _After much reflection, he decided to take the cloth._
   - _Three generations of her family had produced a man or woman of the cloth._
5. The basic nature or character of someone or something, as in the phrase 'cut from the same cloth', meaning very alike.
   - Simple: What someone or something is basically like. 'Cut from the same cloth' means very alike.
   - _The senators were all cut from the same cloth, sharing the same ambitions._
   - _The new principal is cut from the same cloth as the old one, strict but fair._
6. The outward appearance or semblance of something, as distinct from its reality.
   - Simple: The way something looks or seems, not what it truly is.
   - _The surveillance program was dressed in the cloth of public safety, though few believed that was its real purpose._
   - _Voters soon saw that the young reformer was an old insider in new cloth._

## Other meanings

- (noun) A style of dress that marks out a particular profession or social rank.

## Origin

Old English clāþ ("cloth, clothes, covering, sail") came from Proto-Germanic *klaiþą ("garment"), perhaps ultimately from a Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to cling to, stick," and became Middle English cloth. German Kleid ("dress"), Dutch kleed ("robe") and Swedish kläde ("cloth") are relatives.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/cloth (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).