ironed
Adjective 1. Smooth and flat from pressing: Describes fabric, clothing, or other items that have been made smooth, flat, and free of wrinkles by the application of a heated iron. * The hotel provided crisp, ironed sheets. * He wore a freshly ironed shirt to the interview.
The adjective "ironed" is used to describe the state of an item after the process of ironing. It is almost always used before a noun (e.g., ironed shirt, ironed tablecloth) or after a linking verb like "be," "look," or "seem." * It is the past participle of the verb "to iron," functioning here as a descriptive adjective. * It typically implies a neat, formal, or cared-for appearance.
- Basic Use:
- Please put the ironed clothes in the closet.
- Her uniform was always perfectly ironed.
- I prefer to sleep on ironed pillowcases.
- With Adverbs:
- The tablecloth was poorly ironed and still had creases.
- He handed me a neatly ironed handkerchief.
- Well-ironed / Poorly-ironed: These compound adjectives describe the quality of the ironing job.
- A well-ironed suit conveys professionalism.
- Freshly ironed: Emphasizes that the item was ironed very recently.
- The smell of freshly ironed cotton filled the room.
- Newly ironed: Similar to "freshly ironed," indicating recent action.
- Iron (verb): To press clothes or fabric with a heated iron to remove wrinkles.
- She needs to iron her blouse before the meeting.
- Ironing (noun): The task or process of pressing clothes with an iron.
- I have a pile of ironing to do this weekend.
- Unironed (adjective): The opposite state; not having been ironed, wrinkled.
- He grabbed an unironed t-shirt from the drawer.
- Pressed: Often used interchangeably with "ironed," especially for formal clothing.
- He wore pressed trousers.
- Smooth: A more general term; can describe a surface free of wrinkles without specifying the cause.
- Crisp: Suggests a stiff, sharp, and neatly ironed quality, often for linens or formal wear.
- Wrinkled
- Creased
- Rumpled
- Unironed
The core meaning of "ironed" relates specifically to the domestic process of using a heated appliance. It does not refer to the metal "iron." In figurative use, it can sometimes describe something made very smooth or flat, but this is less common. * Literal: an ironed shirt * Figurative (rare): The road was ironed flat by the heavy machinery. (Here, "flattened" or "smoothed" is more typical.)
- (of linens or clothes) smoothed with a hot iron