carpet

English Online Dictionary. What means carpet‎? What does carpet mean?

English

Etymology

From late Middle English carpette, from Old French carpite, from Medieval Latin carpita or Italian carpita, introduced in the 13th century by the Florentines from the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia, from Middle Armenian կարպետ (karpet, “carpet, rug”), earlier կապերտ (kapert).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈkɑː(ɹ)pɪt/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈkɑɹpət/
• Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)pɪt
• Hyphenation: car‧pet

Noun

carpet (countable and uncountable, plural carpets)

1. A fabric used as a complete floor covering.
2. (figuratively) Any surface or cover resembling a carpet or fulfilling its function.
3. Any of a number of moths in the geometrid subfamily Larentiinae
4. (obsolete) A wrought cover for tables.
5. (slang, vulgar) A woman's pubic hair.

Usage notes

The terms carpet and rug are often used interchangeably, but various distinctions are drawn. Most often, a rug is loose and covers part of a floor, while a carpet covers most or all of the floor, and may be loose or attached, while a fitted carpet runs wall-to-wall.

Initially carpet referred primarily to table and wall coverings, today called tablecloth or tapestry – the use of the term for floor coverings dates to the 18th century, following trade with Persia.

Derived terms

Descendants

• → Japanese: カーペット (kāpetto)
• → Korean: 카펫 (kapet)

Translations

Further reading

• carpet on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Verb

carpet (third-person singular simple present carpets, present participle carpeting, simple past and past participle carpeted)

1. To lay carpet, or to have carpet installed, in an area.

2. (transitive) To substantially cover something, as a carpet does; to blanket something.
   • 2017, Jennifer S. Holland, For These Monkeys, It’s a Fight for Survival., National Geographic (March 2017)[1]

     The town of Tompasobaru, a six-hour drive from Tangkoko, is known for the fragrant cloves that carpet the front yards of homes, drying on tarps in the sun. But in the town’s open market, the air hung heavy with the metallic smell of the butcher’s wares.

3. (UK) To reprimand.

Derived terms

Translations

Anagrams

• cet. par., peract, preact

Latin

Verb

carpet

1. third-person singular future active indicative of carpō

Middle English

Noun

carpet

1. Alternative form of carpette