clotheshorse

English

A clotheshorse

Alternative forms

• clothes-horse, clothes horse

Etymology

From clothes +‎ horse.

Noun

clotheshorse (plural clotheshorses)

1. A frame on which laundry is hung to dry.

   Synonyms: airer, clothes maiden, clothes screen, drying rack

   • 2022, Liam McIlvanney, The Heretic, page 279:

     In front of the darkened electric fire stood a wooden clothes horse draped with tights and underwear.

2. (figurative) A person excessively concerned with the appearance of their clothing.
   • 1997, Haruki Murakami, translated by Jay Rubin, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.; republished New York: Vintage Books, 1998, →ISBN, page 471:

     Her mother was a genuine clotheshorse. She had had more kimonos and dresses than room in their chests to store them […]

Related terms

• clothesline

Translations

laundry frame

• Afrikaans: droograk
• Catalan: estenedor (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 晾衣架 (zh) (liàngyījià)

• Esperanto: sekigrako
• Finnish: pyykinkuivausteline (fi)
• French: étendoir (fr) m, tancarville (fr) m
• German: Wäscheständer (de) m, Trockengestell n, Wäschetrockner (de) m (uncommon)
• Hungarian: szárító (hu)
• Italian: stendibiancheria m
• Korean: 횃대 (hwaetdae)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: tørkestativ n

  Nynorsk: tørkestativ n

• Occitan: estendedor, secador (oc)
• Portuguese: (Portugal) estendal (pt) m, (Brazil) varal (pt) m
• Spanish: tendedero (es) m, tenderete (es) m, tendedor m, (Latin America) ténder (es) m
• Swedish: torkställning (sv)
• Turkish: çamaşır askılığı, çamaşır askısı, çamaşırlık

person

• Finnish: vaatefriikki (fi)
• Irish: mainicín m
• Swedish: klädsnobb

See also

• coat hanger

References

• “clotheshorse”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.