Linen

How to spell linen

5 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce linen

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does linen mean?

1. nounCloth woven from flax, or household items such as sheets and tablecloths made from this or similar fabric.

Linen in a sentence

• She ironed the white linen before the dinner guests arrived.

• Fresh linen was folded neatly in the airing cupboard.

Where does linen come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

Linen traces back to the Old English word lin, meaning 'flax', the pale fibrous plant whose stalks are spun into thread; the ending -en originally marked an adjective meaning 'made of', so linen literally meant 'made of flax'. This same plant name runs deep through the European languages, surfacing as the Latin linum and the Greek linon, both naming flax and the cloth woven from it. The Latin linum is also the source of words such as 'line' (originally a flaxen cord) and 'lingerie', and the chemical 'linoleum' was named because linseed oil from flax was used to make it. Over time the adjective 'linen' hardened into a noun for the cloth itself, and later for household goods like sheets and tablecloths even when they are no longer woven from actual flax. The single n in the middle is the usual spelling trap, since the short vowel tempts writers to double it into 'linnen'.

How the word is built

• lin- (from Old English lin: flax)
• -en (made of)