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Glite Dictionary
hudson seal

hudson seal

1 9.9
Fur from a muskrat that is dyed to look like seal fur
  • noun
  • Archaic
translation icon : piel de nutria
  • She inherited a vintage hudson seal muff from her grandmother.

Examples

  • The coat was made of luxurious hudson seal fur.

  • The coat was made of hudson seal, a popular choice in the early twentieth century.

  • Many shoppers could not afford real seal fur, so they opted for hudson seal instead.

  • Is that jacket made from hudson seal?

  • The coat made of Hudson seal fur looked luxurious and warm.

  • She wore a stylish hat made from Hudson seal to the winter gala.

  • They showcased a beautiful handbag made from Hudson seal at the fashion show.

Synonyms

muskrat
vshudson seal
  • US
1 7.4

Soft brown fur from this animal used to make coats and hats

is processed and dyed to resemble sealskin rather than used raw for garments
muskrat fur
vshudson seal
  • US
7.4

A brown soft fur from a muskrat that people use to make warm clothes

is processed and dyed to resemble sealskin rather than sold as plain fur

Surface Forms

hudson seal singular
hudson seals plural

Morphology

hudson + seal

The element 'seal' transparently suggests a sealskin-type fur, so learners who know 'seal' will expect something related to seal pelt; however 'Hudson' is a proper name/label and does not signal the crucial fact that the material is actually muskrat fur processed and dyed to resemble sealskin. This is specialized trade jargon where part of the meaning is inferable from the constituents but the full, specific sense (imitation muskrat-treated-as-seal) is not predictable without prior exposure.

Etymology

Hudson seal may come from the old fur trade around Hudson Bay, where muskrat fur was treated and dyed to look like real seal skin. That's why hudson seal means muskrat fur that has been worked to resemble 'sealskin'.