sheet1
/ʃiːt
/noun
1A large rectangular piece of cotton or other fabric, used on a bed to cover the mattress and as a layer beneath blankets when these are used.Sleeping blankets and covers, sheets and quilts have been made - with the children's assistance....
- Nothing made sense but the darkness behind her eyes and the scratchy cotton of the sheets beneath her skin.
- We're surrounded by pillows, blankets and sun-smelling cotton sheets.
Synonyms
(sheets) bed linen, linen, bedclothes
2A rectangular piece of paper, especially one of a standard size produced commercially and used for writing and printing on: a sheet of unmarked paper...
- It is a neat little unit - exactly the same size as a sheet of A4 paper, and only 65 mm high.
- Our microprocessor isn't some tiny silicon die - it's the size of a sheet of paper, maybe two.
- At first, the prints were only the size of a sheet of typing paper.
Synonyms
piece of paper, leaf, page, folio
2.1A quantity of text or other information contained on a sheet of paper: he produced yet another sheet of figures...
- He had also wanted to see the information sheet of 14 October 1996.
- The RAPIDS database provides a single sheet of information for each project.
- Grabbing the sheet of information, Scott jumped from his chair, and flew out the door.
2.2 Printing A flat piece of paper as opposed to a reel of continuous paper, the bound pages of a book, or a folded map.
2.3All the postage stamps printed on one piece of paper: a sheet of 1p stamps...
- Here she embellished sheets of postage stamps with silk thread; the sewing records the situations in which they were sewn.
- Whoever wishes to give a personal touch to stamps can have their photos printed on stamp sheets and use them.
- The film's title is a reference to the sheet of nine rare postage stamps, which they see as their ticket to the top.
2.4A map, especially one part of a series covering a larger area.These cartographic sheets were used to draft base maps for 6 of the 20 survey zones.
3A broad flat piece of material such as metal or glass: the small pipe has been formed from a flat sheet of bronze...
- Essentially, it is a matter of adding a pigment to the interlayer material between the sheets of glass.
- The problem was that the metal sheet was glued to the door frame, but the adhesive did not properly take grip.
- Mostly the effects and material were taken from the theatre where a metal sheet would replicate thunder and a hard board against another would give the illusion of gunshots.
Synonyms
pane, panel, piece, plate;
slab
3.1An extensive unbroken surface area of something: Loch Affric is a lovely sheet of water among trees [as modifier]: sheet ice...
- Once he finally got parked, he nearly broke his neck slipping on a sheet of black ice.
- Skaters were also having a splendid time in Victoria Park, which had been flooded, and was covered with a sheet of ice in grand condition.
- Carelessly she ran over to the edges to collect more, but slipped and almost fell because of a sheet of ice that was hidden on the floor underneath the snow.
Synonyms
layer, stratum;
covering, blanket, coating, coat, overlay, lamina, lamination, veneer, film, skin, membrane
expanse, area, stretch, sweep
3.2A broad moving mass of flames or water: the rain was still falling in sheets...
- Suddenly the creek falls in a graceful sheet of water into a turquoise pool.
- It finally rained at night, quiet but intense rain, the sort where you look out and see sheets of water moving across vast tracts of Singapore like a purposive entity.
- Heavy sheets of water were battering the pavements.
verb
1 [with object] Cover with or wrap in a sheet of cloth: lorry drivers don’t sheet their loads...
- It would have been already put up, but would be sheeted over in respect of Good Friday, then opened in all its loud raucous noisy shining glory on Easter Saturday.
- These low buildings have no movement; the windows are sheeted like mirrors to hide their games from anyone outside and this is as it should be.
- Delivery vehicles will be sheeted and limited to five movements to and from the plant each working day.
2 [no object, with adverbial of direction] (Of rain) fall in large quantities: rain sheeted down...
- Crowds jostle and a six-piece jazz band begins to entertain the captive audience as the rain sheets down outside.
- Inevitably the rain starts sheeting down, but it's no deterrent to visitors intent on a walk on the beach while the faint-hearted pack J.D Wetherspoon, the Promenades and the amusement arcades.
- The rain is sheeting down out of a heavy sky, turning the Knavesmire into more of a quagmire.
Phrases
(as) white as a sheet
Origin
Old English scēte, scīete, of Germanic origin; related to the verb shoot in its primary sense 'to project'.
English dictionaries usually recognize two words spelled sheet. The first, referring to items including bed coverings, paper, and glass, shares an ancient root with shoot, one sense of which was ‘to project’. Sheet could be used for something giving protection or an awning, which links the two senses. The second is nautical, and was distinct from the first in Old English, though they are ultimately related. Sheets are the ropes attached to the corners of a ship's sail, used for controlling the extent and direction of the sail. If they are hanging loose in the wind, the vessel is likely to be out of control or taking an erratic course. This is the situation referred to in three sheets to the wind, meaning ‘very drunk’.
Rhymes
sheet2
/ʃiːt/Nautical
noun
1A rope attached to the lower corner of a sail for securing or extending the sail or for altering its direction.Soon all three of us have got the hang of tacking, pulling in and letting out the sheets (the ropes attached to the sails) and steering....
- Turn into the wind and let out the sheet to allow the sail to go slack.
- With one sail, one halyard, one sheet, and two winches, the boat is the ultimate in uncomplicated sailing.
2 (sheets) The space at the bow or stern of an open boat.
verb [with object] (sheet something in/out)
1Make a sail more or less taut: notice also how he is sheeting in the sail you need to sheet it out considerably to slow down...
- The tiller goes down, the sails are sheeted in flat and tight, the boat heels into the wind and we to turn to hammer over the line a couple of seconds afterwards, safe and in the lead.
- We dropped everything except the main and mizzen, tried in vain to get some speed, then gave up and sheeted them in tight and turned on the engine.
1.1 (sheet something home) Extend a sail by tightening the sheets so that the sail is set as flat as possible: the jib is sheeted home...
- The first vessels moved away from the docks while canvas crept up the masts and sails were sheeted home, and they watched in fascination as the entire convoy began to move.
Phrases
two (or three) sheets to the wind
Origin
Old English scēata 'lower corner of a sail', of Germanic origin; related to Old Norse skauti 'kerchief' (see also sheet1).