flax

From Middle English flax, from Old English fleax, from Proto-Germanic *flahsą, from Proto-Indo-European *pleḱ- (“to plait”). Cognate with Old Frisian flax, Dutch vlas, Old High German flahs (German Flachs); the Northern Germanic (and most likely the Gothic too^[1]) stem is different.

• IPA^(key): /flæks/
• (dialectal, obsolete) IPA^(key): /flɛks/^[2]

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -æks

flax (countable and uncountable, plural flaxes)

1. A plant of the genus Linum, especially Linum usitatissimum, which has a single, slender stalk, about a foot and a half high, with blue flowers. Also known as linseed, especially when referring to the seeds.
2. The fibers of Linum usitatissimum, grown to make linen and related textiles.
3. A flax bush, a plant of the genus Phormium, native to New Zealand, with strap-like leaves up to 3 metres long that grow in clumps.

The plural flaxes is used to indicate multiple species or varieties of flax; otherwise, flax is uncountable.

• Flax Bourton
• linen
• tow

• “flax”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
• flax on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Linum on Wikispecies.Wikispecies

• falx

• fflex, flaxe, flex, flexe, vlex

Inherited from Old English fleax, from Proto-West Germanic *flahs, from Proto-Germanic *flahsą, from Proto-Indo-European *plek-.

• IPA^(key): /flaks/, /flɛks/

flax (uncountable)

1. (Linum usitatissimum) or its fibers
2. Linen; fabric made out of flax
3. Flax or straw used as a firestarter; tinder

• flaxen

• English: flax

• “flex, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

flax c

1. (colloquial) (unexpected) good luck

• flaxa

• flax in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• flax in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• flax in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)