A French word meaning wool, sometimes used in English contexts related to textiles or fashion.
From Latin 'lana' meaning wool, through Old French. Related to 'lanolin' (wool fat) and 'lanate' (woolly). The word traveled through Romance languages maintaining its essential meaning of sheep's fleece.
This French borrowing reminds us how textile terms often cross language boundaries unchanged, since wool trade was historically international. Fashion houses still use 'laine' to add sophistication to garment descriptions, playing on consumers' association of French words with luxury.
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