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tablecloth

tablecloth

39 1.0
A cloth that covers a table during a meal
  • noun
  • /ˈteɪbəlˌklɔθ/
: mantel
  • I looked at her across the checked tablecloth, at the yellow candlelight flickering across her rigid face.
  • a white tablecloth
  • a plastic tablecloth
  • covered with a tablecloth

Big hotel ballroom, you know, like white tablecloths, fine China, tuxedos, chandeliers.

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Examples

  • She carefully spread the clean tablecloth across the dining table before serving the meal.

  • Big hotel ballroom, you know, like white tablecloths, fine China, tuxedos, chandeliers.

  • And we can put a tablecloth over that big table too.

  • I pull the tablecloth out from under the dishes --

  • You wouldn't happen to have a tablecloth, would you?

  • There's a clean tablecloth in the cupboard.

  • Well, they set it up very nicely with the tablecloth and all the goodies on it.

    Academic text (2011)
  • Residents are served family style at tables, with tablecloths provided for the evening meal.

    Academic text (1995)
  • I've been admiring your tablecloth.

  • The elegant dining room was a blur of white: tablecloths at empty tables, snow smearing the broad windows.

    Academic text (1991)

Synonyms

cloth
vstablecloth
203 1.0

A piece of material made by joining threads together and used for making clothes or for cleaning

is the specific cover used on dining tables during meals
oilcloth
vstablecloth
2 6.8

A strong cloth covered with oil that protects tables from water and stains

is an ordinary dining cover used for meals, not mainly waterproof
tea cloth
vstablecloth
  • UK
1 2.7

A small cloth put on a table when serving tea

is larger and used for full dining meals rather than only tea
nappe
vstablecloth
  • UK
1 8.4

A cloth that covers a table during a meal

means the same but is an alternative term for the same item

How Covered

tablecloth
39 1.0
placemat
6 1.6

Surface Forms

tablecloth singular
tablecloths plural

Morphology

tablecloth = table + cloth (transparent) = table + cloth

A direct compound of 'table' + 'cloth'; the meaning 'a cloth used on a table' is immediately derivable by learners.

Etymology

Tablecloth is simply the old words table and cloth joined together: table is the piece of furniture and cloth is a piece of fabric. So a tablecloth is literally a 'cloth' you put on a 'table' to protect or decorate it during a meal.