winding sheet

English

Noun

winding sheet (plural winding sheets)

A burial shroud.
(historical) A collection of tallow rising up against the wick of a candle, once regarded as an omen of death.
- 1859, Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities
  He resorted to his pint of wine for consolation, drank it all in a few minutes, and fell asleep on his arms, with his hair straggling over the table, and a long winding-sheet in the candle dripping down upon him.

Synonyms

winding cloth

Translations

burial shroud

Finnish: käärinliina (fi)
Irish: taiséadach m
Russian: са́ван (ru) m (sávan)

Scottish Gaelic: anart-bàis m
Serbo-Croatian: mrtvački pokrov

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