Find the word definition

The Collaborative International Dictionary
Linsey-woolsey

Linsey-woolsey \Lin"sey-wool"sey\ (l[i^]n"s[y^]*w[oo^]l"s[y^]; 277), n.

  1. Cloth made of linen and wool, mixed.

  2. Jargon. [Obs.]
    --Shak.

Linsey-woolsey

Linsey-woolsey \Lin"sey-wool"sey\, a. Made of linen and wool; hence, of different and unsuitable parts; mean.
--Johnson.

Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
linsey-woolsey

late 15c., originally a cloth woven from linen and wool; the words altered for the sake of a jingling sound. Linsey is attested from mid-15c., apparently meaning "coarse linen fabric." Some sources suggest a connection or influence from the place name Lindsey in Suffolk.

Wiktionary
linsey-woolsey

n. a fabric made of both linen and wool.

WordNet
linsey-woolsey

n. a rough fabric of linen warp and wool or cotton woof

Wikipedia
Linsey-woolsey

Linsey-woolsey (less often, woolsey-linsey or in Scottish English, wincey) is a coarse twill or plain-woven fabric woven with a linen warp and a woollen weft. Similar fabrics woven with a cotton warp and woollen weft in Colonial America were also called linsey-woolsey or wincey. The name derives from a combination of lin (an archaic word for flax, whence "linen") and wool. This textile has been known since ancient times; known as Shatnez in Hebrew, the Torah and hence Jewish law explicitly forbid wearing it.

Usage examples of "linsey-woolsey".

They dressed in calico in summer and in winter linsey-woolsey, and wore at their work ample aprons of osnaburg, a small checked blue and white cloth.

Brian Fitzpatrick SIR,- Yours received, and am surprized you should use me in this manner, as have never seen any of your cash, unless for one linsey-woolsey coat, and your bill now is upwards of L150.

After the moving queue of linsey-woolsey clad servitors came four cowled guards, yawning and idly slapping their bare thighs with their whips.