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shoe leather

shoe leather

1 2.1
Skin from an animal that is made into material for shoes
  • noun
  • /ʃuː ˈlɛðər/
translation icon : cuero para zapatos
  • To ensure comfort, it is important to choose shoe leather that is both soft and flexible.
  • make shoe leather

Examples

  • Save your shoe leather.

  • Have made shoe leather of my skin.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • Thank you for your excellent post based on good shoe leather (OK leather ear to the phone) reporting.

    Blog text (22)
  • "In Senegal, the chicken, when you got any, was as tough as shoe leather," Marcia said.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • Pennsylvanians broke their backs and wore out some shoe leather to remove Santorum from the Senate, but before he could even challenge Santorum, Bob Casey was taken on the tour to Israel, his genitalia and sentiments checked for appropriate commitment to Israel/Zionism.

    Blog text (29)
  • The artisan carefully selected high-quality shoe leather for crafting durable shoes.

  • He admired the rich color and texture of the shoe leather used in the design.

Synonyms

leather
vsshoe leather
509 1.0

The skin of an animal made smooth and used to make items like shoes and bags

is the same material used specifically to make footwear

How Durable

shoe leather
1 2.1
leatherette
2 5.2

Surface Forms

shoe leather singular
shoe leathers plural

Morphology

shoe + leather

The meaning 'leather that is used to make shoes' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'shoe' (a covering for the foot) with 'leather' (treated animal skin). This noun–noun compound denotes a type/material relationship that is a common, cross-linguistic compositional pattern and would be immediately understandable to a B1 learner who knows both constituents.

Etymology

The name shoe leather simply means leather made for shoes. Imagine a cobbler holding a piece of leather cut to fit a sole, and you can see why it means 'leather that is used to make shoes'.