floss

(flôs, flŏs)

1. Dental floss.

2. Short or waste silk fibers, especially from the outer surface of the cocoon of a silkworm.

3. Soft, loosely twisted thread, as of silk or cotton, used in embroidery.

4. A downy or silky fibrous substance, such as corn silk or silk cotton.

v. flossed, floss·ing, floss·es

v.tr.

To clean between (teeth) with dental floss.

v.intr.

To use dental floss.

[Perhaps alteration of French floche, tuft of wool, from Old French floc, floche, from Latin floccus.]

floss′er n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

floss

(flɒs)

1. (Biology) the mass of fine silky fibres obtained from cotton and similar plants

2. (Biology) any similar fine silky material, such as the hairlike styles and stigmas of maize or the fibres prepared from silkworm cocoons

3. (Knitting & Sewing) untwisted silk thread used in embroidery, etc

4. (Dentistry) See dental floss

(Dentistry) to clean (between one's teeth) with dental floss

[C18: perhaps from Old French flosche down]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

floss

(flɔs, flɒs)

n.

1. the cottony fiber yielded by the silk-cotton tree.

a. short untwisted silk filaments, often used to make embroidery thread.

b. embroidery thread of silk or fine cotton.

3. any silky, filamentous matter, as the silk of corn.

4. dental floss.

v.i.

5. to use dental floss on the teeth.

v.t.

6. to clean (the teeth) with dental floss.

Also called floss′ silk` (for defs. 1–3).

[1750–60; probably < French floche, as in soie floche floss silk]

floss′er, n.

floss

- A word for untwisted filaments of silk used in making embroidery or satin.

floss

[flɒs]

A. N

1. (also floss silk) → cadarzo m

2. (for embroidery) → seda f floja

3. (also dental floss) → hilo m or seda f dental

B. VT (Dentistry) to floss one's teeth → limpiarse los dientes con hilo or seda dental

C. VI (Dentistry) → limpiarse los dientes con hilo or seda dental

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

floss

[ˈflɒs]

(= thread) → fil m

(also dental floss) → fil m dentaire

vi (with dental floss) → utiliser du fil dentaire

vt
to floss one's teeth → se passer du fil dentaire entre les dents

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

floss

n → Flockseide f, → Schappe f; (= thread) → Florettgarn nt, → ungezwirntes Seidengarn; (= dental floss) → Zahnseide f

vt teeth → mit Zahnseide reinigen

vi → sich (dat) → die Zähne mit Zahnseide reinigen

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

floss

[flɒs]

1. n → filamenti mpl; (thread) → seta da ricamo
dental floss → filo interdentale

2. vt (teeth) → pulire col filo interdentale

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

floss

n. seda floja;

dental ___ → hilo dental.

floss

n (dent) seda or hilo dental; vt, vi limpiar (los dientes) con seda dental

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

A wide plain, where the broadening Floss hurries on between its green banks to the sea, and the loving tide, rushing to meet it, checks its passage with an impetuous embrace.

View in context

The burden is no longer heavy when we have for our past troubles only the same sweet mingling of pleasure and pity that we feel when old knight-hearted Colonel Newcome answers " adsum " to the great roll-call, or when Tom and Maggie Tulliver, clasping hands through the mists that have divided them, go down, locked in each other's arms, beneath the swollen waters of the Floss.

View in context

"It is coming, Emmie," she said presently; "do you remember in The Mill on the Floss, when Maggie Tulliver closed the golden gates of childhood behind her?

View in context

His black hair, fine as floss silk, hung in glossy curls about his round, dimpled face, while a pair of large dark eyes, full of fire and softness, looked out from beneath the rich, long lashes, as he peered curiously into the apartment.

View in context

But earrings of gold and emerald still clung to the withered ears, and the hair, two-thirds of a fathom long, a shimmering silk of golden floss, flowed from the scalp that covered what had once been the wit and will of her that Bashti reasoned had in her ancient time been quick with love in the arms of man.

View in context

Her father, a manager of estates for various members of the landed gentry, was to a large extent the original both of her Adam Bede and of Caleb Garth in 'Middlemarch,' while her own childish life is partly reproduced in the experiences of Maggie in 'The Mill on the Floss.' Endowed with one of the strongest minds that any woman has ever possessed, from her very infancy she studied and read widely.

View in context

The shining bald head, which looked so very large because it shone so much; and the long grey hair at its sides and back, like floss silk or spun glass, which looked so very benevolent because it was never cut; were not, of course, to be seen in the boy as in the old man.

View in context

According to new report available with Million Insights, Dental Floss is a cord of thin filaments exclusively used to remove dental plaque and food from between teeth.

Dental Floss Market To Witness Enhanced Demand In Order To Prevent Dental Diseases Like Dental Cavities And Gingivitis Till 2022 / Million Insights

Her grandson Steve Winnitt said it was a very happy day, adding: "Floss continues to live a wonderful life with her family and close friends around her.

Floss puts age down to Guinness

And they are also nosing ahead of other groups as Floss now has more certificates to her name than any other oth ha h volunteer rescue dog in the UK or Ireland.

It's a Sarda life; Floss walkies off with top search dog skills

[ClickPress, Tue May 28 2019] In this report, we analyze the Dental Floss industry from two aspects.

Dental Floss Market- Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast, 2019 - 2024

* Clean around your teeth with dental floss. Careful flossing removes plaque and leftover food that a toothbrush can't reach.

Maintaining a Healthy, Natural Smile for Life; What to do and not do to effectively care for your teeth and gums

Noun	1.	floss - a soft loosely twisted thread used in embroidery thread, yarn - a fine cord of twisted fibers (of cotton or silk or wool or nylon etc.) used in sewing and weaving
	2.	floss - a soft thread for cleaning the spaces between the teeth dental floss thread, yarn - a fine cord of twisted fibers (of cotton or silk or wool or nylon etc.) used in sewing and weaving
Verb	1.	floss - use dental floss to clean; "floss your teeth after every meal" cleanse, clean - clean one's body or parts thereof, as by washing; "clean up before you see your grandparents"; "clean your fingernails before dinner"