Reverse Dictionary: FLAX

ADJECTIVES
► FIRED of flax: having a scorched appearance as the result of disease or adverse growing conditions → 1783
► HACKLED of flax or hemp: prepared for spinning using a hackle or hackling machine → 1611
► HATCHELLED of flax or hemp: prepared or dressed with a hackle → 1573
► HECKLED of flax or hemp: prepared for spinning using a hackle or hackling machine → 1521 orig. Sc.
► LINOUS of the nature of flax → 1715 obs.
► NOGGEN made of coarse flax → 1492 Eng. dial.
► POUCEY of a person: experiencing the effects of inhaling flax dust → 1880 Sc. & Eng. dial.
► RIPPLED of flax and hemp: drawn through a ripple so as to remove the seeds → 1724
► RUFFED of flax: dressed or heckled with a ruffer → 1853
► SPRITTY of yarn spun from flax: containing particles of woody tissue which appear as dark flecks → 1737 orig. Ireland
► TOWEN made of tow, i.e. coarse flax or hemp → 1612 obs.

INTERJECTIONS & PHRASES
► IN THE STUB said of growing flax → 1730 obs.

NOUNS
► BOB a seed vessel of flax → 1615 obs.
► BOLL a rounded seed vessel of flax or cotton → 1500
► BOON the stalk of flax or hemp after the fibre has been removed → 1425
► BOTT-HAMMER a hammer or mallet with a ridged face, used to break the stalks of flax → 1839 obs.
► BRAKE a toothed instrument for braking flax or hemp → 1450
► BRATCHEL ‘he husks of flax set on fire → 1815 Sc. obs.
► BREARDS the short flax recovered from the first two by a second hackling → 1733 Sc.
► BUN the stalk or stalky part of flax or hemp → 1400 obs. exc. Eng. dial.
► BUNCH to bruise flax, etc., by beating it → 1362 obs. exc. Eng. dial.
► CATARACT a brake for flax → 1693 obs.
► CODILLA the coarse tow or fibre of flax or hemp → 1748
► DISTAFF a stick or spindle about 3 feet long, onto which wool or flax is wound for spinning → a1000
► FLAX-HOPPE a head or seed-pod of flax → 1500 obs.
► FLAX-HURD the coarse parts of flax, tow → 1614
► FLUVIATION a steeping flax in water → 1682 obs.
► HACK a flax comb → 1658
► HACKLE a tool for splitting and combing out flax or hemp, usually consisting of a board or bar set with sharp steel pins arranged in rows through which the fibres are drawn → 1485
► HAND BRAKE a hand-operated instrument used to break and crush flax or hemp → 1766
► HARL ► HARLE a filament or fibre of flax or hemp → 1652
► HATCHEL an instrument with sharp pins or teeth for combing out flax or hemp → 1300
► HEAD a bundle of flax, hemp, or the like → 1325
► HECKLE a tool for splitting and combing out flax or hemp → 1425
► HOPPE the seed-vessel of flax → 1325 obs.
► HURDS the coarser parts of flax or hemp; tow → a1000
► JAVEL a quantity of stalks of flax, etc. laid in the sun to dry → 1601 obs.
► LINE 1. the fibre of flax → a1000 obs.
2. flax spun or woven → a1000
► LINE-GOUT some plant which hinders flax in its growth → 1600
► LINE-STRIKE a hank of flax → 1483 obs.
► LINGET the seed of ‘lint’ or flax → 1477 Sc. obs.
► LINOSITY abundance of flax → 1656 obs.
► LINSEED the seed of flax, known as the source of linseed oil → a1000
► LINT 1. the flax plant → 1458 obs. exc. Sc.
2. flax prepared for spinning; also, the refuse of the same → 1480 chiefly Sc.
► LINT-TOP as much flax as is usually laid on a distaff for being spun off → 1721
► LONG FLAX flax spun its natural length without cutting → 1711
► PATERNOSTER a measure of flax (‘ten handfulls [of flax] in a strick is 2 pounds’) → 1659 obs.
► POB fibrous waste left over from the scutching of flax → 1747 Sc.
► POB-MIDDEN a pile of flax refuse → 1765 Sc. obs.
► POUCE flax dust → 1880 Eng. dial.
► QUARTERN a quarter of a pound of flax → 1878 Eng. dial.
► RIB a flat iron tool used for cleaning flax after the breaking process → 1325 obs.
► RIBBING a scraping flax or hemp to remove particles of core → 1398 obs.
► RIBSKIN a leather apron worn by a person while engaged in ‘ribbing’ flax → 1500 obs.
► RIPPLE a toothed or hooked implement used for removing seeds from flax or hemp → 1425 chiefly Sc. & Eng. dial.
► ROCK a distaff together with the flax attached to it; a quantity of flax placed on a distaff to be spun → 1568
► RUFFER a device for ‘ruffing’ flax, consisting of a board studded with spikes or teeth → 1853
► SCUTCHING a beating flax stalks to get rid of the straw and prepare the fibre for hackling → 1733
► SCUTCHING TOW the refuse of flax after scutching → 1853
► SHEAVE the woody part of flax or hemp → 1797
► SHIVES the refuse of flax or hemp → 1601 obs. exc. Eng. dial.
► SHOVE the woody core of flax or hemp → 1688
► SHOW the woody core of the stalk of a flax plant, especially when separated from the surrounding fibre → 1765 chiefly Sc. & N. Ireland
► STALK the woody core of flax and hemp → 1577
► STRICK a bundle of broken flax or hemp for heckling → 1440
► STRIKE a bundle or hank of flax, etc. → 1386
► SWINDLE a wooden tool used for beating and scaping flax so as to remove any woody or coarse parts → 1500 obs.
► SWINGLE a wooden instrument resembling a sword, used for beating and scraping flax so as to remove any woody or coarse parts → 1325
► SWINGLETREE a board used in dressing flax or hemp → 1500
► SWINGLING a dressing flax or hemp with a swingle; scutching → 1500
► TAP O’ TOW an amount of flax which can be spun at one time → 1792 Sc. & Eng. dial.
► TEAR the finest fibre of flax or hemp → 1541
► TEWTAW ► TEWTER ► TEW-TOW an implement for breaking or beating flax or hemp → 1652 obs.
► THRIPPLING-COMB a comb-like implement for cleaning flax or hemp → 1728 Sc. obs.
► TIRE ► TYRE the finest fibre of flax → 1601 obs.
► TOP a tuft or handful of flax or other fibre; an amount of flax that may be spun at one time → a1000 obs.
► TOW 1. the fibre of flax or hemp prepared for spinning by some process of scutching → 1377
2. the shorter fibres of flax or hemp that are separated by heckling from the fine and long-stapled called ‘line’ → 1530
► TOWING a combing or carding flax → 1891
► WATER ROT a retting flax or hemp by steeping in water → 1825 chiefly US
► WRACK an inferior grade of flax → 1879

NOUNS – PERSON
► FLAXIE a worker in a flax mill → 1901 NZ colloq.
► FLAX-WENCH a female flax-worker → 1616
► HACKLER a flax or hemp dresser; a person employed to hackle flex or hemp → 1649 hist.
► HATCHELLER a flax or hemp dresser → c1450
► HECKLER a flax or hemp dresser; a person employed to hackle flax or hemp → 1297 hist.
► HECKLESTER a flax or hemp dresser: originally female → 1480 obs.
► HEMP-HECKLER a flax or hemp dresser → 1725
► HICKLER a flax or hemp dresser → 1895 Eng. dial. (Bk.)
► RIBBER a person who cleans flax → 1312 obs.
► SPINSTER a woman or girl who spins flax, wool, cotton, etc. into thread or yarn → 1380

VERBS
► BRAY to crush flax or hemp with a brake (see nouns) → 1530 obs.
► DIKE to place flax or hemp in a dike or watercourse to steep → 1799
► DIZEN to attire a distaff with flax, etc. for spinning → 1530 obs.
► HACKLE to prepare flax or hemp with a hackle or hackling machine, splitting, straightening, and combing the fibres in preparation for spinning → 1599
► HATCHEL to dress flax or hemp by splitting and straightening the fibres with a hackle → 1325
► HECKLE to prepare flax or hemp with a hackle or hackling machine, splitting, straightening, and combing the fibres in preparation for spinning → 1325
► HECKLE AWAY of flax: to disintegrate during the hackling process → 1733 obs.
► KEMB to prepare flax, wool, etc. for spinning by parting and straightening the fibres with wool-combs or cards → 1300 obs.
► KNOCK a bundle of heckled flax → 1573 obs.
► MANURE to prepare flax for scutching → 1880 Ireland
► MILL to twist flax into thread → 1808 obs.
► MILL DOLL ► MILL DOLLY to beat flax or hemp as a prison occupation → 1714 sl., obs.
► NAIL refuse of flax or wool → 1797 obs.
► RET To macerate flax or hemp)in order to soften the woody stem and separate the fibres from it → 1325
► RIB to rub or scrape flax or hemp with a flat iron tool in order to remove the particles of core adhering to it after the breaking process → 1400 obs.
► RIPPLE to pass flax or hemp through a comb so as to remove the seeds → 1350
► RIT to dry flax or hemp → 1728 Eng. dial. obs.
► ROUGH-DRESS to beat and scrape flax or hemp so as to remove the coarser particles → 1622
► RUFF to dress or heckle flax with a ruffer → 1853
► SCUTCH to dress flax, etc. by beating → 1733
► SHIVE to ‘break’ flax or hemp → 1483 obs.
► STAMP to thresh flax → 1856 Eng. dial.
► STRICK to heckle flax → 1808
► SWINGLE to beat and scrape flax with a swingle so as to remove the coarser particles; to scutch → 1325
► TEASE to separate or pull apart the fibres of flax, wool, etc. in preparation for spinning → a1000
► TED 1. to spread out cut corn or flax on the ground to dry → 1796 Eng. dial.
2. to dress flax → 1811 Eng. dial.
► TEWTAW ► TEWTER to beat or dress flax or hemp → 1601 obs.
► TOW to comb or card flax → 1615
► TOWTAW to scutch flax → 1652 obs.
► TUFFLE to bind up flax in loose sheaves → 1799
► WATER to ret flex or hemp in order to soften the woody stem and separate the fibres from it → 1450
► WATER ROT to ret flax or hemp by steeping in water → 1705 chiefly US