herringbone

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herringbone

/ˈhɛɹɪŋˌboʊn/ Canada

Where it comes from

From herring + bone.

noun herringbones · herring-bone

countable, literally A bone of a herring. The prosperity of Amsterdam was then so great that it was said that Amsterdam was "founded on herring-bones."
countable, uncountable A zigzag pattern, especially made by bricks, on a cloth, or by stitches in sewing. 'The best path of life is but a herring-bone pattern.'
countable A method of climbing a hill by pointing the skis outward in a V-shape to keep from sliding backwards.
countable, uncountable Twilled fabric woven in rows of parallel sloping lines. For some strange and elusive reason, the staid, prosaic herringbones have angled themselves into a position of fashion prominence.

verb herringbones · herringboning · herringboned · herring-bone

To stitch in a herringbone pattern.
To climb a hill by pointing the skis outward in a V-shape to keep from sliding backwards.

Translations

Every language

noun bone of a herring

Italiano	ossatura dell'aringa

noun pattern

Português	ziguezague
Deutsch	Fischgrätenstich, Fischgrätenmuster
Italiano	a spina di pesce
Русский	ёлочка jóločka

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MLA

"herringbone." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/herringbone. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

herringbone. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/herringbone

Chicago

"herringbone." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/herringbone.

BibTeX

@misc{herringbone_2026,
  title = {herringbone},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/herringbone},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}