English

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a gingham tea towel/dishcloth

Etymology

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From Malay genggang (ajar; apart), or a corruption of French Guingamp, the name of a town in Brittany, France, where this cloth may have been made.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈɡɪŋ.əm/
  • Audio (US):(file)

Noun

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gingham (countable and uncountable, plural ginghams)

  1. (uncountable) A cotton fabric made from dyed and white yarn woven in checks.
    • 1923, Lucy Maud Montgomery, “Chapter 8”, in Emily of New Moon:
      Aunt Elizabeth had produced a terrible gingham apron and an equally terrible gingham sunbonnet from somewhere in the New Moon garret, and made Emily put them on. The apron was a long sack-like garment, high in the neck, with sleeves.
    • 2022, Ling Ma, “G”, in Bliss Montage, New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, →ISBN:
      Always, the relentless bass of hip-hop blasting in rooms of nautical-themed furnishings, faded driftwood, gingham upholstery, linen and chambray.
  2. (countable) A dress made from that material.
    • 1838 (date written), L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XIV, in Lady Anne Granard; or, Keeping up Appearances. [], volume I, London: Henry Colburn, [], published 1842, →OCLC, page 187:
      "We have put on the pale blue silks that we wore at Isabella's wedding; that, however, was Georgiana's thought," continued Helen; "she said it would be impossible to go to church in our pink ginghams."
  3. (UK, slang, archaic) An umbrella.
    • 1878, Gilbert Abbott À Beckett, George Cruikshank's Table-book, page 268:
      [] their ginghams stuck under their arms at right angles to their back-bones []

Translations

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See also

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Further reading

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Norwegian Bokmål

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Etymology

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From English gingham.

Noun

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gingham m (definite singular ginghamen, indefinite plural ginghamer, definite plural ginghamene)

  1. (countable and uncountable) gingham

Norwegian Nynorsk

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Etymology

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From English gingham.

Noun

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gingham m (definite singular ginghamen, indefinite plural ginghamar, definite plural ginghamane)

  1. (countable and uncountable) gingham