a piece of fabric

Meanings

1. 1nouncountable

   A piece of cloth or other material made by weaving or knitting fibers, used for making clothes, curtains, etc.

   Grammar: This phrase is countable because of 'piece': one piece of fabric, two pieces of fabric. 'Fabric' alone is uncountable: some fabric, not 'a fabric'.

   Patterns

   • a piece of fabric
   • a piece of fabric for something
   • cut a piece of fabric

   She bought a piece of fabric to make a dress.

   He cut a piece of fabric and sewed it onto the torn jeans.

   This piece of fabric feels very soft.

2. 2noununcountablefigurative

   The basic structure or framework of something, such as a society or a building.

   Grammar: In this figurative sense, 'fabric' is uncountable and not used with 'a piece of'.

   Patterns

   • the fabric of something

   Trust is part of the fabric of a healthy community.

   The fabric of the old building was damaged by the earthquake.

Word forms

Common combinations

a piece of fabric

I need a piece of fabric to patch this hole.

soft fabric

The shirt is made of soft fabric.

cotton fabric

Cotton fabric is good for summer clothes.

fabric store

We went to the fabric store to buy material for curtains.

Synonyms and how they differ

cloth

Very similar; 'cloth' is often used for a piece of fabric used for a particular purpose, like a cleaning cloth.

material

A general word for what something is made of; 'fabric' is more specific to woven or knitted cloth.

textile

A more technical word for fabric, often used in industry.

Word family

fabric noun

The uncountable material itself.

fabricate verb

To make or invent something, often falsely.

fabrication noun

The act of making something, or a lie.

Commonly confused: a piece of fabric or fabric?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “a piece of fabric”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Explore more words