quilt
Americannoun
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a coverlet for a bed, made of two layers of fabric with some soft substance, as wool or down, between them and stitched in patterns or tufted through all thicknesses in order to prevent the filling from shifting.
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anything quilted or resembling a quilt.
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a bedspread or counterpane, especially a thick one.
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Obsolete. a mattress.
verb (used with object)
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to stitch together (two pieces of cloth and a soft interlining), usually in an ornamental pattern.
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to sew up between pieces of material.
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to pad or line with material.
verb (used without object)
noun
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a thick warm cover for a bed, consisting of a soft filling sewn between two layers of material, usually with crisscross seams
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a bedspread or counterpane
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anything quilted or resembling a quilt
verb
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to stitch together (two pieces of fabric) with (a thick padding or lining) between them
to quilt cotton and wool
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to create (a garment, covering, etc) in this way
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to pad with material
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informal to strike; clout
Other Word Forms
- quilter noun
Etymology
Origin of quilt
1250–1300; Middle English quilte < Old French cuilte < Latin culcita mattress, cushion
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
On early spring nights in rural Hydesville, New York, the chill dampness from Mud Creek seeped into a person’s bones should a foot, or a finger, escape thick layers of homemade quilts.
From Literature
She filled it about half full of corn shucks and quilts, and then put Daisy and me down in it.
From Literature
There were quilts and dishes and the big empty kettle in the hearth.
From Literature
Perhaps that is because while I was teaching and teaching teachers, I also had my side gigs—entertaining big groups, experimenting in the kitchen, a quilting group.
I was imagining concrete floors and mice skittering about, but the sofa bed is unfolded and covered with a thick quilt.
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
