Count
In textiles, three meanings: 1. Number size of a yarn. 2. Number of ends and picks per inch of weave, or their sum, as 80 x 80 percale, or 200-count sheeting. 3. Number of wales and courses per inch in a knitted fabric.

Course
A row of stitches across a knitted fabric. Corresponds to the weft (or filling) in woven goods.

Finish
General term for processes used in converting gray goods into finished cloth. Bleaching, mercerizing, steaming, singeing, dyeing are typical finishing processes.

Knitting
Process of making fabric by interlocking series of loops of one or more yarns. Main types are jerseys (circular knits), and tricots (warp knits), and double knits.

Lycra
Trademark owned by Du Pont for polyurethane multifilament spandex elastomer. The fused multifilaments in a bundle form a monofilament yarn that stretches and snaps back into place like rubber. Launched in 1958 as Fiber K.

Non-woven
Neither woven, knitted, nor spun. A material made of fibers in a web or mat held together by a bonding agent.

N.P.I.
The number of needles per inch in the cylinder or needle bed in a knitting frame. Sometimes referred to as cut.

Nylon
Generic name for “a manufactured fiber in which the fiber-forming substance is any long-chain synthetic polyamide having recurring amide groups as an integral part of the polymer chain.”

Polyester
Generic term for a manufactured fiber in which the fiber-forming substance is any long-chain synthetic polymer composed of at least 85% by weight of an ester of dihydric alcohol and terephthalic acid.

Printing
Process of producing designs of one or more colors on a fabric. There are several methods, such as roller, block, screen, etc., and several color techniques, such as direct, discharge, and resist. Block and screen prints are generally more expensive than roller prints.

Rayon
A generic name for man-made fibers, monofilaments, and continuous filaments, made from regenerated cellulose. Fibers produced by both viscose and cuprammonium process are classified as rayon.

Wash-and-wear
Fabrics or garments which require little or no touch-up ironing after washing. Term hs been eclipsed by relatively new development of durable press, which some describe as the true wash-and-wear.

Washable
Fabrics which will not fade or shrink when washed according to specified directions.

Waterproofing
Fabrics are made completely waterproof by treatment with coatings of rubber, resin, or plastic. “Waterproof” and “water-repellent” do not have exact meanings, but “waterproof” is the more absolute.

Source: Textile Glossary by Marvin Klapper