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Glite Dictionary
flax brake

flax brake

9.9
A machine that separates the woody parts of flax stems from the fibers used to make linen
  • noun
  • Archaic
translation icon : desflecadora
  • The old farmer demonstrated how to use the flax brake to process raw flax.

Examples

  • The flax brake played a crucial role in turning flax plants into usable fiber for linen.

  • The flax brake efficiently separates fibers from stems.

  • Many museums display a flax brake as part of their exhibits on traditional textile production.

  • Farmers use a flax brake to extract valuable fibers.

  • The flax brake played a crucial role in turning flax plants into usable fiber for linen.

  • Many museums display a flax brake as part of their exhibits on traditional textile production.

  • The old farmer demonstrated how to use the flax brake to process raw flax.

Surface Forms

flax brake singular
flax brakes plural

Morphology

flax + brake

The noun-noun compound signals a tool associated with flax, so a learner who knows 'flax' and 'brake' will likely infer it is a device used in processing flax. However, the required sense of 'brake' here is a specialized/archaic meaning of a tool for breaking or separating fibres (not the common 'stopping' device), so the precise function (separating woody stems from fibres) is not fully predictable without exposure.

Etymology

Flax brake is the name of an old tool used to make linen from flax plants; brake here means 'to break' the hard stalks. The machine crushed the stalks so the soft fibers came free, so the name refers to the tool that helps 'to separate' the useful fiber from the hard parts.