Valenciennes lace
- noun
- /ˌvælənˈsiːənz leɪs/
- Specialized
:
encaje de Valenciennes
- Her wedding dress was trimmed with delicate Valenciennes lace around the neckline and sleeves.
Examples
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The museum displays an exquisite collection of Valenciennes lace from the eighteenth century.
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Collectors often seek out antique Valenciennes lace for its fine craftsmanship and intricate designs.
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She wore a beautiful Valenciennes lace dress.
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The Valenciennes lace on her veil was exquisite.
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Collectors often seek out antique Valenciennes lace for its fine craftsmanship and intricate designs.
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Her wedding dress was trimmed with delicate Valenciennes lace around the neckline and sleeves.
-
The museum displays an exquisite collection of Valenciennes lace from the eighteenth century.
Synonyms
79
2.0
A thin decorative cloth made from threads in open patterns used on clothes
1
9.1
A handmade decorative cloth made by twisting thread wound on small wooden spools around pins on a pillow
A fine handmade lace with flower patterns made in Valenciennes
Decorative cloth made by twisting and braiding thread on a cushion marked with pins
How Delicate
Surface Forms
Morphology
This is a straightforward place-name + product composition: 'Valenciennes' (a town known for lace-making) + 'lace' yields 'lace from Valenciennes', i.e. a particular style of lace. Such origin-based noun compounds are cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily infer the meaning.
Etymology
Valenciennes lace gets its name from the town of Valenciennes, France, where makers used many small bobbins to weave open, flower-like patterns in lace. Think of people sitting with threads and bobbins making tiny flowers, and so the name came to mean 'a fine, floral bobbin lace'.