oakum

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Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈəʊkəm/

Noun

oakum

1. A material, consisting of tarred fibres, used to caulk or pack joints in plumbing, masonry, and wooden shipbuilding.
2. The coarse portion separated from flax or hemp in hackling.
   • 1983, Peter Ackroyd, The Last Testament of Oscar Wilde:

     My eyesight began to fail, from the strain of picking oakum in my cell.

Synonyms

• (flax or hemp fibers separated in hackling) tow, hards

Translations

• French: étoupe
• Portuguese: estopa
• Russian: па́кля
• Spanish: estopa

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