Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. A cotton cloth of fine texture, usually with a plaid, striped, or checked pattern.
- n. A silk, generally striped, cloth.
- n. A light cotton cloth used for drapery.
- n. A similar cloth of rayon.
- n. A large handkerchief of brightly colored silk or cotton, often worn as a turban.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A large handkerchief of silk and cotton, usually in bright colors, used by the negroes in the West India islands and elsewhere for turbans, etc.
- n. A thin cotton cloth, generally corded or figured, used for shirts, etc.
Wiktionary
- n. a brightly colored cotton fabric with a checked or striped pattern.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. A large silk-and-cotton kerchief, usually of bright colors, such as those often used by negroes for turbans.
- n. A light patterned cotton fabric.
WordNet 3.0
- n. a light patterned cotton cloth
- n. a state in southeastern India on the Bay of Bengal (south of Andhra Pradesh); formerly Madras
- n. a city in Tamil Nadu on the Bay of Bengal; formerly Madras
Etymologies
- From Madras. (Wiktionary)
- After Madras (Chennai), India. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Patchwork madras is basically a variety of madras cut up into strips then sewn back together to form a patchwork of these different combinations, which somehow turn out to be a very attractive mix of colors and patterns.”
“The boys never attended a "madras" (sic) or Islamic school as Emir claims, because the Islamic Center at 1425 E.”
“Nazism was not identical with atheism (religion lessons in the schools were still mandatory up to 1945!), and Stalin (brought up in a Christian orthodox "madras") did not commit his atrocities under the banner of atheism:”
“He is a man of about 75, nursing a martini and looking enormously pleased to be wearing a madras jacket with a striped tie.”
The Huffington Post: Ann Landi: Dating After Divorce: Geezer Dates
“Now you're ready to saunter into a trendy restaurant in an open-collar shirt, madras blazer and knee-length pants.”
“The audience howled when the American husband came out on stage wearing madras Bermudas and sat down with his family to eat dinner in the kitchen while the maids ate in the dining room.”
“In fact, as I write this very article, I am nibbling a bowl of Chex Mix... or is it a bowl of madras?”
The Huffington Post: Big Girls, Small Kitchen: Brave New Kitchen: Frozen Treats For Summer
“There we were, the next morning, Mrs. O. still wearing white linen pants, me with my madras jacket not yet in mothballs, facing the last and worst thing of all about summer—it's over.”
“The team pants and madras parkas will not be offered for retail sale, but Burton's other top-of-the-line snowboard pants are available online for as much as $450.”
Analysis: What's next for Shaun White and men's snowboarding?
“Patchwork madras can however, be a little tricky to work with, as its one of the few fabrics, with a set of stitches criss-crossing the entire face of the textile.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘madras’.
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phrontistery - m
from phrontistery.info
mabble, mabsoot, macadamize, macarism, macarize, macaronic, macerate, macerator, machair, machairodont, machicolation, machinule and 898 more...
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The sun never sets
viceroy, pondicherry, nabob, pukka sahib, ayah, bridge, crore, parsee, scandal point, madras, sepoy, kerala and 21 more...
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Handkerchiefs, etc.
handkerchief, kerchief, veronica, sudary, sudarium, hankie, keverchief, neckcloth, neckerchief, maniple, orarium, bandana and 41 more...
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Disturbing definitions from the Centu...
Although the Century Dictionary has some exquisite definitions which exhibit attention to scientific detail and respect for terms, ideas, and technology that might otherwise be forgotten, this wind...
cockshy, homosexuality, niggard, sodomy, Creole, promiscuity, savage, ass, hamfatter, ill-gendered, madras, hydrencephalocele and 22 more...
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bestiary
agave, incunable, echt, wissenschaft, friscalating, obsolescence, clavier, yajna, ecstatic, casual, protean, hum and 41 more...
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Tip-Top Toponymic
Place names that have entered general speech. Toponyms that interest me in other ways are on Place Names Of Distinction
hamburger, wiener, finlandisation, vernissage, hackney, venetians, bohemian, anti-macassar, berliner, cravat, calico, serendipity and 113 more...
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Words Covered in Faery Dust (M)
words that evoke magic, mystery, mayhem, magnificence or anything else that glimmers in the grass
mace, macintosh, madras, magenta, magic 8 ball, magma, mahogany, maiden, mail, mainsail, maize, malachite and 169 more...
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That's right, another list
muck-a-muck, ipse dixit, solipsism, anticlinal, analogical, amoral, alogical, synclinal, disinclined, iconological, studly, flitch and 179 more...
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Fabrics
Woven, knit and tatted fabrics. Other kinds of cloth, such as tapa and chamois are not included.
shikii, shantung, cotton, linen, tweed, wool, velour, velvet, velveteen, gabardine, chenille, silk and 550 more...
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yardage
types of fabric
cotton, wool, silk, linen, rayon, nylon, spandex, lycra, lurex, goretex, challis, brocade and 77 more...
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imProper
zeppelin, china, japan, mercedes, champagne, burgundy, madeira, bourbon, turkey, cognac, tequila, madras and 13 more...
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eponymous fabrics or articles of clot...
several of these characters seem to have been involved in the Crimean War
cardigan, balbriggan, balaclava, raglan, macintosh, madras, cashmere, angora, denim, oxford, wigan, bloomers and 24 more...
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dynamite's Words
avant-garde, secret, shutters, brassiere, devanagari, lotus, composition, film, vanguard, ultra, brocade, voile and 41 more...
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A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Ge...
Words culled from A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers.
stockbrokering, tempera, herpetologist, bloodred, memoir-y, remaindered, planethood, puffery, pshaw, naif, gimmickry, poseurism and 48 more...
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Fabrications
cotton, wool, silk, polyester, microfiber, corduroy, flannel, gabardine, quilt, linen, tapestry, nylon and 65 more...
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Textiles
A list from the 1911 edition of "Words: Their Spelling, Pronunciation, Definition, Application" by the Gregg Publishing Company.
aigrette, a la mode, Amazon, applique, armure, baize, balbriggan, balmoral, batiste, bedticking, bobbinet, buckram and 88 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for madras.
ravages madras
city
and cloth
and fashion
and a state of mind. Dec 15, 2007
ravages City, actually
Now Chennai.
Dec 15, 2007