The Collaborative International Dictionary
Velvet \Vel"vet\, n. [OE. velouette, veluet, velwet; cf. OF. velluau, LL. velluetum, vellutum, It. velluto, Sp. velludo; all fr. (assumed) LL. villutus shaggy, fr L. villus shaggy hair; akin to vellus a fleece, and E. wool. See Wool, and cf. Villous.]
A silk fabric, having a short, close nap of erect threads. Inferior qualities are made with a silk pile on a cotton or linen back.
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The soft and highly vascular deciduous skin which envelops and nourishes the antlers of deer during their rapid growth. Cotton velvet, an imitation of velvet, made of cotton. Velvet cork, the best kind of cork bark, supple, elastic, and not woody or porous. Velvet crab a European crab ( Portunus puber). When adult the black carapace is covered with a velvety pile. Called also lady crab, and velvet fiddler. Velvet dock (Bot.), the common mullein. Velvet duck. (Zo["o]l.)
A large European sea duck, or scoter ( Oidemia fusca). The adult male is glossy, velvety black, with a white speculum on each wing, and a white patch behind each eye.
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The American whitewinged scoter. See Scoter.
Velvet flower (Bot.), love-lies-bleeding. See under Love.
Velvet grass (Bot.), a tall grass ( Holcus lanatus) with velvety stem and leaves; -- called also soft grass.
Velvet runner (Zo["o]l.), the water rail; -- so called from its quiet, stealthy manner of running. [Prov. Eng.]
Velvet scoter. (Zo["o]l.) Same as Velvet duck, above.
Velvet sponge. (Zo["o]l.) See under Sponge.
Usage examples of "soft grass".
The Gateway haunted his thinking and he lay back on the soft grass seeking the clue he needed.
Even in the soft grass, the wheels came off the ground in under 150 feet.
Often, over the next few weeks, they rode out together to lie down in the soft grass.
In memory I went back to those days in Rome when I had been mortal, and there was my garden, the garden of the villa of my father, and I was walking in the soft grass and listening to the sound of the fountain, and then it seemed that all through time, the garden changed but never changed, and it was always there for me.
He crouched down with the soft grass and bright flowers adorning Maude's grave between them.
Exhausted, filled with pain, he stumbled and fell down and down, to the thick, soft grass that flowed from the wall to the enchanted castle.