Corduroy

a thick, corded, cotton fabric. It is used for the outer garments of laborers and those engaging in out-of-door sports. To a less extent, it is used for covering furniture and for fancy work. Corduroy is a pile fabric belonging to the same class as velveteen. The pile is produced by an extra system of weft threads, which "float" over the ground cloth. These wefts are firmly bound in at intervals. The loops are left on the surface in groups to form the cords. Between these groups, the pile weft disappears into the ground web of the fabric. The loops in the center of a group are longer than those on the sides. After weaving, these loops are slit by the cutter, brushed up and closely sheared. Corduroy was made first in France in the seventeenth century. It was designed for the wear of the king's huntsmen, the name, corduroy, meaning "king's cord." Corduroy has given its name to a kind of road constructed through swampy places by means of small logs laid close together crosswise, forming a solid but uneven roadbed.