Houndstooth
/ˈhaʊndzˌtuːθ/noun
A textile pattern of broken checks or abstract four-pointed shapes, usually in black and white.
Did you know?The pattern’s English name is a straightforward visual metaphor, but the jagged shape was also linked in textile tradition to the sharp, broken geometry of woven twill designs.
Etymological Timeline
Old English
OE
hundtōþ
“a dog's tooth”
Middle English
ME
houndes teth
“hound's teeth”
19th Century
English
hound's tooth
“a descriptive name for the jagged check pattern”
20th Century
English
houndstooth
“the established modern spelling for the textile pattern”