Satin Definition

sătn
noun
A fabric of silk, nylon, rayon, or the like having a smooth finish, glossy on the face and dull on the back.
Webster's New World
A garment made of this fabric.
American Heritage
A kind of paint that dries to a smooth shiny finish.
American Heritage
Synonyms:
  • fabric of royalty
  • cloth
  • glossy silk
  • silk
adjective
Made of or covered with satin.
American Heritage
Made of or like satin; smooth, soft, and glossy.
Webster's New World

Semi-glossy. Particularly describing a type of paint.

Wiktionary

Other Word Forms of Satin

Noun

Singular:
satin
Plural:
satins

Origin of Satin

  • Middle English satyn, zatayn from Old French satayn, zatin, zettonin probably ultimately from Arabic (’aṭlas) zaytūnī (satin) of Zaitun from Zaytūn , Quanzhou, China (an important international trading center in medieval times) an Arabization (probably influenced by Arabic zaytūn olive) of Middle Chinese tshz̩ tfiəwŋ an early name for Quanzhou (also the source of Mandarin Cìtóng (chéng) former name of Quanzhou)

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • From Old French satin, perhaps from Arabic الساتان زيتون (“satin from Zaitun"), a city in China, perhaps æ–°ç–†, Tsinkiang in the Fukien province, a port during the middle ages. The word's form is perhaps influenced by French seta (“silk"). OED finds the Arabic theory insupportable and instead suggests the French word as coming directly from Latin.

    From Wiktionary

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