Meaning & use
flax
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Meanings
noununcountable
A plant with slender stems and blue flowers that is grown for its fibers and seeds.
Grammar: Used without 'a' or a plural when talking about the plant or its material: fields of flax.
Patterns
- grow flax
- flax field
- flax plant
The farmers planted flax in the spring.
Flax has been cultivated for thousands of years.
The blue flowers of flax brighten the fields in summer.
noununcountable
The light-colored fiber from the flax plant, spun into thread and woven into linen.
Grammar: Refers to the raw material, not individual pieces; no plural form.
Patterns
- flax fiber
- flax thread
- spin flax
Linen is made from the fibers of flax.
She spun flax into fine thread.
The fabric is woven from flax grown locally.
nouncountable
The seed of the flax plant, often used for oil or as a food ingredient.
Grammar: Usually plural ('flaxseeds') when referring to individual seeds; 'flaxseed' can be uncountable as a mass.
Patterns
- flax seed
- flaxseed oil
- grind flaxseed
Add a spoonful of ground flaxseed to your smoothie.
Flax seeds are rich in omega-3 fatty acids.
The recipe calls for flaxseed oil instead of butter.
Common combinations
- flax fiber
- The rope is made from strong flax fiber.
- flax seed
- She sprinkled flax seed on her yogurt.
- flax oil
- Flax oil is often used in wood finishing.
- grow flax
- They grow flax for its seeds and fibers.
- flax linen
- The tablecloth is made of pure flax linen.
Synonyms and how they differ
- linseed
- Refers specifically to the seed of flax, especially when used for oil; 'flax' can mean the whole plant or fiber.
Word family
- flaxen adjective
- Describing pale yellow hair, like the color of flax fibers.
- flaxseed noun
- The seed of the flax plant, often used as a food or supplement.
Commonly confused: flax or linen?
flax vs linen
Linen is the finished cloth made from flax; flax is the plant or raw fiber.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'flax' correctly?
Choose one answer.
Flax is the plant grown in fields, so 'harvested a field of flax' is correct. 'A dress made of flax' suggests the plant itself, not the woven cloth (linen); 'added flax to his coffee' would be flaxseed or flaxseed oil; 'The flax was soft and warm' describes a fabric, not the plant.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “flax”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.