oilcloth
2
6.8
- noun
- /ˈɔɪlˌklɔθ/
:
hule
- I wiped the damp oilcloth on an unoccupied table, not too near or too far from the counter.
- oilcloth-covered table
- oilcloth curtain
- piece of oilcloth
Examples
-
The picnic table was covered with a bright blue oilcloth to protect it from spills.
-
All of the tables had been removed, along with the checkered oilcloth covers.
Fiction book (1998) -
We sat at a round table covered with white oilcloth.
Fiction book (1999) -
The room was small, with split timber walls, a single window covered by red oilcloth, and a narrow door.
Fiction book (2002) -
"There," she says, setting the plate, the pretty morning plate, blue Depression glass, on the daisy-sprinkled oilcloth of the table.
Fiction book (2002) -
My grandmother kept smoothing the table's oilcloth with her hand while they talked.
Fiction book (1990) -
Amedee had spread one of Rose's oilcloth tablecloths under the sheet.
Fiction book (2002) -
The kitchen had two other tables instead of counters, and Willie covered them in red oilcloth and stapled it underneath the tops.
Fiction book (1991) -
More, Caudell among them, lay down on their oilcloths, spread their blankets over themselves, and slept under the stars, with hats for pillows.
Fiction book (1992) -
Here among papers, notebooks, report cards, and some packets of letters, a copybook in oilcloth—the diary.
Fiction book (1999)
Synonyms
47
1.0
A cloth that covers a table during a meal
2
2.2
Cloth items like napkins and tablecloths used to cover a dining table
1
6.7
A strong waterproof coat made from cloth soaked in oil or wax to keep you dry in rain
1
9.6
Thin paper that is made waterproof and slightly see-through by soaking in oil
A waxed, waterproof cloth used to wrap a dead body for burial
How Waterproof
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
Oilcloth is simply made from the two words oil and cloth, meaning 'cloth with oil'. People coated cloth with oil to make it waterproof, like a small raincoat for tables and shelves, so an oilcloth protects surfaces from spills and stains.