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The skin or fibrous part of the flax plant, when broken and cleaned by hatcheling or combing. Earth flax (Min.), amianthus. -- Flax brake, a machine for removing the woody portion of flax from the fibrous. -- Flax comb, a hatchel, hackle, or heckle. -- Flax cotton, the fiber of flax, reduced by steeping in bicarbina…

A plant in new Zealand (Phormium tenax), allied to the lilies and aloes. The leaves are two inches wide and several feet long, and furnish a fiber which is used for making ropes, mats, and coarse cloth.

Made of flax; resembling flax or its fibers; of the color of flax; of a light soft straw color; fair and flowing, like flax or tow; as, flaxen thread; flaxen hair.

The seed of the flax; linseed.

See Toadflax.

Like flax; flaxen. Sir M. Sandys.

A variety of asbestus. See Amianthus.

having narrow leaves and showy orange and yellow flowers; -- called also butter and eggs, flaxweed, and ramsted.

Earth flax, or mountain flax; a soft silky variety of asbestus.

Flaxen-colored. [Obs.] Florio.

The pod or capsule of a plant, as of flax or cotton; a pericarp of a globular form.

The woody portion flax, which is separated from the fiber as refuse matter by retting, braking, and scutching.

An instrument or machine to break or bruise the woody part of flax or hemp so that it may be separated from the fiber.

To destroy the strength, firmness, or consistency of; as, to break flax.

es, and spiked flowers, and grow attached to the roots of other plants, as furze, clover, flax, wild carrot, etc. The name is sometimes applied to other plants related to this genus, as Aphyllon uniflorumand A. Ludovicianum.

of two shades of yellow, as Narcissus incomparabilis, and in the United States to the toadflax (Linaria vulgaris). -- Butter boat, a small vessel for holding melted butter at table. -- Butter flower, the buttercup, a yellow flower. -- Butter print, a piece of carved wood used to mark pats of butter; -- called also b…

Made of silk; having a silky or flaxlike appearance. Coles.

y species of flat sea urchins belonging to the Clypeastroidea. -- Oil cake the refuse of flax seed, cotton seed, or other vegetable substance from which oil has been expressed, compacted into a solid mass, and used as food for cattle, for manure, or for other purposes. -- To have one's cake dough, to fail or be disap…

Having a spur, as the flower of the toadflax and larkspur; spurred. Gray.

A fine, thin, and white fabric made of flax or linen. He hath ribbons of all the colors i' the rainbow; . . . inkles, caddises, cambrics, lawns. Shak.