Crossword Dictionary

What's The Definition Of Tassel?

\Tas"sel\, n. (Falconry) A male hawk. See {Tercel}.
\Tas"sel\, n. [See {Teasel}.] A kind of bur used in dressing cloth; a teasel.
\Tas"sel\, n. [OE., a fastening of a mantle, OF. tassel a fastening, clasp, F. tasseau a bracket, Fr. L. taxillus a little die, dim. of talus a die of a longish shape, rounded on two sides and marked only on the other four, a knuckle bone.] 1. A pendent ornament, attached to the corners of cushions, to curtains, and the like, ending in a tuft of loose threads or cords. 2. The flower or head of some plants, esp. when pendent. And the maize field grew and ripened, Till it stood in all the splendor Of its garments green and yellow, Of its tassels and its plumage. --Longfellow. 3. A narrow silk ribbon, or the like, sewed to a book to be put between the leaves. 4. (Arch.) A piece of board that is laid upon a wall as a sort of plate, to give a level surface to the ends of floor timbers; -- rarely used in the United States. {Tassel flower} (Bot.), a name of several composite plants of the genus {Cineraria}, especially the {C. sconchifolia}, and of the blossoms which they bear.
\Tas"sel\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Tasseled}or {Tasselled}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Tasseling} or {Tasselling}.] To put forth a tassel or flower; as, maize tassels.
\Tas"sel\, v. t. To adorn with tassels. --Chaucer.