Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun The soft down of a swan.
- noun A soft woolen or wool and silk fabric.
- noun Flannelette.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun The down or under-plumage of a swan. It is made into a delicate trimming for garments, but it is principally used for powder-puffs. Also
swan-down . - noun A fine, soft, thick woolen cloth.
- noun A thick cotton cloth with a soft pile or nap on one side: more commonly called
Canton or cotton flannel.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun The down, or fine, soft feathers, of the swan, used on various articles of dress.
- noun A fine, soft, thick cloth of wool mixed with silk or cotton; a sort of twilled fustian, like moleskin.
- noun See Cotton flannel, under
Cotton .
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun Alternative spelling of
swansdown .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun down of the swan
- noun soft woolen fabric used especially for baby clothes
Etymologies
Sorry, no etymologies found.
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Examples
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Sara, you must have a white dress; something with long, soft folds, and -- yes -- and trimmed with swan's-down.
Sara, a Princess Fannie E. Newberry
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Dora Talbot, coming into the corridor in a pale pink cashmere dressing-gown trimmed with swan's-down, in which she looks the very personification of innocence and youth, screams loudly, and demands hysterically to be informed as to the cause of the unusual noise.
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For some time the children stood in silence, watching the snow-flakes as they whirled and danced and floated like so many feathers, only to fall and pile up and cover the brown earth and the bare branches as with a lovely mantle of swan's-down.
Harper's Young People, February 10, 1880 An Illustrated Weekly Various
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"Do try it on, Sara; I'm a little afraid about this skirt; it looks short in front, and you know she has had to go almost entirely by measure, so far; here, let me pin the rest of this swan's-down in place, while you take off your dress."
Sara, a Princess Fannie E. Newberry
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The Indians have such a fancy for feathers, that, in some of their medicine ceremonies, they smear their heads with a sticky substance, and cover them all over with swan's-down.
Life at Puget Sound: With Sketches of Travel in Washington Territory, British Columbia, Oregon and California Caroline C. Leighton
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They resumed their duties; the Indian "swish-swished" ahead, as if wading through a sea of swan's-down; the dogs followed listlessly; the partners leaned against the stubborn load.
The Boy Scouts Book of Campfire Stories Franklin K. [Editor] Mathiews
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You will observe that he had half a yard of the finest cambric, as soft as a zephyr, and as warm as swan's-down, tied once round; and ending before in long deep borders of the most precious
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 57, No. 357, June, 1845 Various
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The most delicate ruffles filled the front of his swan's-down vest and fell over his hands, which were remarkably white and small and taper-fingered, like a fine lady's.
Round Anvil Rock A Romance Nancy Huston Banks
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"I shall wear my red satin cloak trimmed with swan's-down," said she.
Story Hour Readers — Book Three Alice Julia Christie Dillon
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And never mind about the swan's-down; for I have some on a dress,
Sara, a Princess Fannie E. Newberry
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