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fabric

Flag: gbEnglishMerriam-Webster Dictionary

fab​ric
noun
fab·​ric
ˈfa-brik

Definition

  • underlying structure framework //the fabric of society
  • an act of constructing erection
    specifically the construction and maintenance of a church building
  • structural plan or style of construction
    texture, quality —used chiefly of textiles
    the arrangement of physical components (as of soil) in relation to each other
  • a material that resembles cloth
  • the appearance or pattern produced by the shapes and arrangement of the crystal grains in a rock
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms
cloth textile
Examples
  • //The curtains are made of expensive fabric.
  • //scarves made of woven fabrics
  • //the fabric of the community
First Known Use
15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
History and Etymology
borrowed from Middle French & Medieval Latin; Middle French fabrique "act of construction, something created or constructed, the created world, structure, construction and maintenance of a church," borrowed from Medieval Latin fabrica, going back to Latin, "process of making something, craft, art, workshop," noun derivative from *fabricus "of a craftsman," from fabr-, faber "craftsman, smith" (perhaps going back to dialectal Indo-European *dhabh-r- —perhaps of non-Indo-European origin— whence also Armenian darbin "smith," from *dhabh-r-sneh2) + -icus -ic entry 1

NOTE: The Latin derivative fabrica may have been shortened from fabrica ars, perhaps literally "smith's craft, smith's place of work." The base *dhabh-r- has been compared with Gothic gadaban "to happen, be suitable" and a host of related words (see daft), though the semantic link is tenuous.

fabric
noun

Synonyms


fab​ric
noun
fab·​ric
ˈfa-brik

Definition

  • underlying structure framework //the fabric of society
  • an act of constructing erection
    specifically the construction and maintenance of a church building
  • structural plan or style of construction
    texture, quality —used chiefly of textiles
    the arrangement of physical components (as of soil) in relation to each other
  • a material that resembles cloth
  • the appearance or pattern produced by the shapes and arrangement of the crystal grains in a rock
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms
cloth textile
Examples
  • //The curtains are made of expensive fabric.
  • //scarves made of woven fabrics
  • //the fabric of the community
First Known Use
15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
History and Etymology
borrowed from Middle French & Medieval Latin; Middle French fabrique "act of construction, something created or constructed, the created world, structure, construction and maintenance of a church," borrowed from Medieval Latin fabrica, going back to Latin, "process of making something, craft, art, workshop," noun derivative from *fabricus "of a craftsman," from fabr-, faber "craftsman, smith" (perhaps going back to dialectal Indo-European *dhabh-r- —perhaps of non-Indo-European origin— whence also Armenian darbin "smith," from *dhabh-r-sneh2) + -icus -ic entry 1

NOTE: The Latin derivative fabrica may have been shortened from fabrica ars, perhaps literally "smith's craft, smith's place of work." The base *dhabh-r- has been compared with Gothic gadaban "to happen, be suitable" and a host of related words (see daft), though the semantic link is tenuous.

fabric
noun

Synonyms