sheets

Meanings

1. 1nounplural

   Plural of sheet: large rectangular pieces of cloth placed on a bed, between you and the blanket.

   Grammar: Plural of a countable noun: change the sheets.

   Patterns

   • change the sheets
   • clean sheets

   She put clean sheets on the guest bed.

   The hotel changes the sheets every morning.

   Cotton sheets stay cool in the summer.

2. 2nounplural

   Plural of sheet: thin flat pieces of something such as paper, metal or glass.

   Grammar: Often followed by of: sheets of paper.

   Patterns

   • sheets of something

   He handed out three sheets of paper to every student.

   The workshop stores sheets of steel against the wall.

   Sheets of ice covered the pond.

3. 3nounplural

   Plural of sheet: wide moving or spread-out layers of liquid, rain or fire.

   Grammar: Used with weather and fluids: sheets of rain.

   Patterns

   • sheets of rain

   Sheets of rain hit the windshield.

   Sheets of flame rose from the old barn.

   Water poured down the cliff in thin sheets.

Word forms

Common combinations

change the sheets

I change the sheets every Sunday.

sheets of paper

Bring two sheets of paper to the exam.

clean sheets

There is nothing better than clean sheets after a long trip.

sheets of rain

We drove through sheets of rain.

between the sheets

After the long day she was soon between the sheets.

Synonyms and how they differ

linens

This is a broader word for bed and table cloth, and more formal in a store or hotel.

layers

This is general and does not suggest flatness or being fabric.

pages

This works only for paper in a book or pad, while sheets can also be loose.

panels

This describes flat pieces of rigid material in a larger structure, so it is narrower.

Word family

sheet noun

one flat piece or layer

sheeting noun

material made in sheets

bedsheet noun

a sheet for a bed

spreadsheet noun

a computer table of numbers

Commonly confused: sheets or cheats?

Practice

Make it your own

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

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