Saturday, September 7, 2013

Word of the Day

toile \twahl\,
noun:
1. any of various transparent linens and cottons.
2. toile de Jouy.

His attention had been diverted by the astonishing amount of toile the room contained. The curtains were toile, the bedspreads were toile, as were the lamp shades and the boudoir chair.
-- Katherine Mosby, "The Season of Lillian Dawes," 2009

The tables on which new books spiraled roofward in propeller-shaped piles were draped in toile tablecloths; the identical-looking saleswomen sported dark blond bowl cuts, pleated wide-wale corduroys, duck boots, and matching toile smocks...
-- Heidi Julavits, "The Uses of Enchantment," 2006
The word toile comes from the French word of the same spelling meaning "linen cloth" or "canvas." Toile can also refer to a specific monochromatic print of pastoral scenes.

Dictionary.com Word of the Day