weft

Definition

The horizontal threads that are interlaced through the warp in a woven fabric.

Etymology

From Middle English wefte, from Old English wefan (“to weave”), from Proto-West Germanic *weban, from Proto-Germanic *webaną. Equivalent to weave + -t (abstract nominal suffix).

Example Sentences

• "It is all the more remarkable therefore that in one respect — weft colours — some of the pirnless looms are more versatile than conventional machines. Figure 6 shows the colour mechanism of a conventional loom designed to weave six colours of weft (there is never any problem about colour patterning in the warp)."
• "Other techniques for shaping included angling one or both loom bars, adding extra wefts, or adjusting warp tension."
• "1993, Anni Albers, On Weaving, note on Plate 17, page 48, To give greater firmness to the basket-weave plain weave, thin weft threads can be introduced that will be covered by the heavier pattern wefts of the basket weave."