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tulle

Noun
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A lightweight, fine net-like fabric made of silk or nylon, used for veils, dresses, and ballet tutus; in poetry, it symbolizes delicacy, transparency, and the ethereal, often evoking femininity and airiness.

Detailed Definition
Tulle is a textile term for a sheer, lightweight net fabric. Dickinson’s use of it helps create a visual image of the speaker dressed in something airy and fragile, fitting the poem’s ghostly atmosphere.
Example
Example in poetry:
“For only Gossamer, my Gown— / My Tippet—only Tulle—” (Dickinson, “A Toad, can die of Light!”); tulle’s sheer netting makes it apt for images of bridal dress, veils, and fragility; a poet might write “tulle of mist across the river,” extending the fabric’s transparency metaphorically; in contemporary lyric, “black tulle” can turn delicacy toward mourning or performance
Additional Notes
"Tulle" is a specialized fabric word in the quoted line, so many readers may need to look it up.; Found in the poem, Because I Could Not Stop for Death by Emily Dickinson
Also Known As
sheer fabric netting lace veil
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