corduroy English · revision 1074
11 Oct 2026, 04:58 by bogdan “New entry from dictionary sources” current version
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+ ==Pronunciation==
+ * IPA: /ˈkɔːdəɹɔɪ/ ''(UK)''; /ˈkɔɹdəɹɔɪ/ ''(US)''^(Wiktionary)
+
+ ==Etymology==
+ It is probably [[cord]] with obsolete ''duroy'', the name of a coarse woollen cloth made in the west of England,^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(RHWU) itself of unknown origin.^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) The popular explanation from French ''corde du roi'' “the king's cord” is not supported, as the phrase is not found in French.^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(RHWU) Merriam-Webster calls the origin unknown.^(MW Collegiate)
+
+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==
+ A coarse, thick-ribbed cotton fabric (1774).^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)
+
+ ==Semantic evolution==
+ In the plural the word meant corduroy trousers (1787–91).^(Barnhart 1995)^(OED 1989) In the U.S. it was applied from the 1780s to a road of logs laid crosswise over swampy ground, from its ribbed look;^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1995)^(OED 1989) the verb, to build such a road, is from 1854–62.^(MW Collegiate)^(OED 1989) The adjective is from 1789.^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)
+
+ ==Timeline==
+ * 1774 – the fabric.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)
+ * 1780 – ''corduroy road''.^(Barnhart 1995)
+ * 1787–91 – corduroy trousers.^(Barnhart 1995)^(OED 1989)
+ * 1789 – adjective.^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)
+ * 1854 – verb, to build a log road.^(MW Collegiate)
+
+ ==Modern meaning==
+ ===Noun===
+ # A durable cut-[[pile]] fabric, usually of cotton, with lengthwise ribs.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)
+ # ''(plural)'' Trousers made of this fabric.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(OED 1989)
+ # A road made of logs laid side by side across it, as over swampy ground.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)
+
+ ===Adjective===
+ # Made of or resembling corduroy.^(AHD)^(RHWU)^(OED 1989)
+ # Of a road, made of logs laid crosswise.^(AHD)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)
+
+ ===Verb===
+ # To build a road of logs laid crosswise.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)
+
+ ==Related words==
+ * [[cord]]
+
+ ==References==
+ {{reflist}}