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sisal
sisal, a fibre used in making rope obtained from the leaves of the Agave sisalana. It is a hard fibre native to Central America, with cultivation of it later spreading to South America, Africa, Indonesia, the Philippines, and elsewhere. A hairy rope, it is, like hemp, a pale straw colour. In the days when it was used aboard ship it was frequently tarred to preserve it, though it resists deterioration in salt water well. It has a good ability to stretch, but is unreliable. Like all ropes made from natural fibres, it has now been replaced by synthetic ropes.
The Henequin plant, native to Mexico, produces a fibre sometimes known as Yucatán, or Cuban, sisal. |
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"sisal." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 11 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "sisal." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (February 11, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-sisal.html "sisal." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Retrieved February 11, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-sisal.html |
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sisal
si·sal / ˈsisəl; ˈsī-/ • n. a Mexican agave (Agave sisalana, family Agavaceae) with large fleshy leaves, cultivated for fiber production. ∎ the fiber made from this plant, used esp. for ropes or matting. |
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"sisal." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 11 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "sisal." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (February 11, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-sisal.html "sisal." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved February 11, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-sisal.html |
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sisal
sisal (fibre of) species of Agave, etc. XIX. f. name of a port in Yucatan, Mexico.
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T. F. HOAD. "sisal." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 11 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "sisal." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 11, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-sisal.html T. F. HOAD. "sisal." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 11, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-sisal.html |
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sisal
sisal See AGAVE.
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MICHAEL ALLABY. "sisal." A Dictionary of Plant Sciences. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. 11 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MICHAEL ALLABY. "sisal." A Dictionary of Plant Sciences. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. (February 11, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O7-sisal.html MICHAEL ALLABY. "sisal." A Dictionary of Plant Sciences. 1998. Retrieved February 11, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O7-sisal.html |
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sisal
sisal
•hassle, Kassel, passel, tassel, vassal
•axel, axle
•cancel, hansel, Hänsel, Mansell
•transaxle
•castle, metatarsal, parcel, tarsal
•chancel • sandcastle • Newcastle
•Bessel, nestle, pestle, redressal, trestle, vessel, wrestle
•Edsel • Texel
•intercensal, pencil, stencil
•pretzel • staysail • mainsail • Wiesel
•abyssal, bristle, epistle, gristle, missal, scissel, thistle, whistle
•pixel • plimsoll
•tinsel, windsail
•schnitzel, spritsail
•Birtwistle
•paradisal, sisal, trysail
•apostle, colossal, dossal, fossil, glossal, jostle, throstle
•consul, proconsul, tonsil
•dorsal, morsel
•council, counsel, groundsel
•Mosul • fo'c's'le, forecastle
•bustle, hustle, muscle, mussel, Russell, rustle, tussle
•gunsel • corpuscle
•disbursal, dispersal, Purcell, rehearsal, reversal, succursal, tercel, transversal, traversal, universal
•Herzl
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Cite this article
"sisal." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 11 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "sisal." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (February 11, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-sisal.html "sisal." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved February 11, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-sisal.html |
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