- an Asian shrub, Boehmeria nivea, of the nettle family, yielding a fiber used especially in making textiles.
- the fiber itself.
Origin of ramie
First recorded in 1810–20, ramie is from the Malay word rami a kind of grass
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for ramie
Ramie or China grass is a soft, silky, and extremely strong fiber.Textiles
William H. Dooley
There was plenty of the ramie cloth at hand, but it was quite yellow.The Wonder Island Boys: Exploring the Island
Roger Thompson Finlay
China grass comes from a different plant but is about the same as ramie.
The next in importance to linen is ramie or rhea, and China grass.
Ginghams are also woven of silk and cotton mixed or of silk and ramie.
- a woody urticaceous shrub of Asia, Boehmeria nivea, having broad leaves and a stem that yields a flaxlike fibre
- the fibre from this plant, used in making fabrics, cord, etc
C19: from Malay rami
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012