What does "tweed" mean?
A coarse woolen fabric used for clothing.
Tweed
/twiːd/ name, noun
name, noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A coarse woolen fabric used for clothing.
- Grammar: tweed is listed as name, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: corduroy, cotton, fabric, flannel.
- Useful contrasts: manmade fabric, synthetic fabric, synthetic garment.
- Usage evidence: He is dressed in an old tweed suit.
How to use "tweed"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "tweed" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "tweed" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "tweed" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "tweed" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "tweed" is acting as name, noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "corduroy" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "tweed", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A coarse woolen fabric used for clothing. countable, uncountable
"MICHAEL NOWAK, alias John Mazurkiewiez, was indicted for stealing, on the 15th of April, 2 1/4 yards of woollen cloth, called tweed, value 12s., and 2 1/4 yards of woollen cloth, called doe-skin, value 17s., […]"
- 2 (usually in the plural) trousers made of flannel or gabardine or tweed or white cloth wordnet
- 3 thick woolen fabric used for clothing; originated in Scotland wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A river in the United Kingdom; a river in the Scottish Borders area which for part of its length forms the border between Scotland and England. It flows into the North Sea at Berwick-upon-Tweed and Tweedmouth, England. countable, uncountable
"The Tweed is a salmon river, and the Blessing of the Nets ceremony heralds the start of the fishing season."
- 2 A municipality and community therein, in Hastings County, Ontario, Canada. countable, uncountable
- 3 An unincorporated community in Laurens County, Georgia, United States. countable, uncountable
- 4 A local government area in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia, named after the Tweed River; in full, Tweed Shire. countable, uncountable
- 5 A river in this region of New South Wales. countable, uncountable
Show 1 more definition
- 6 A surname. countable
Antonyms
manmade fabricsynthetic fabricsynthetic garment
Example
"He is dressed in an old tweed suit."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "tweed"?
Common synonyms include: corduroy, cotton, fabric, flannel, gabardine, garment.
How do you use "tweed" in a sentence?
He is dressed in an old tweed suit.
How do you pronounce "tweed"?
Pronounced /twiːd/.
Etymology
Attested since the 1830s. Probably a shortening or back-formation from Scots tweedling (“a type of twilled cloth”), attested since the 16th century and related to tweedle; the two words are variants of tweeling and tweel, which go back to Middle English twel, twyle (“a type of woven fabric; twill”), whence also English twill. Scottish tradition says it derives directly from tweel when an English merchant misread tweels or tweeled (cloth) in an 1831 letter from a Scottish merchant as Tweed(s) and took it to be a trade-name based on the River Tweed, but the DSL says evidence for this is lacking, and because English merchants must have been familiar with tweel(ed cloth) before the 1830s, it seems unlikely to be based on misunderstanding tweel rather than on the well-attested tweedle. Several of the earliest citations, from 1839, 1841, and 1845 treat it as a new name for a familiar cloth.