n.
- A staff that holds on its cleft end the unspun flax, wool, or tow from which thread is drawn in spinning by hand.
- An attachment for a spinning wheel that serves this purpose.
- Work and concerns traditionally considered important to women.
- Women considered as a group.
[Middle English distaf, from Old English distæf : dis-, bunch of flax + stæf, staff.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
