Chinese character for silk cloth

It names silk cloth in modern Chinese.

You’ll see it in 丝绸 and 绸缎, both textile terms; in a fabric description it names the material.

In the Han-era 《说文解字》, an early Chinese dictionary, 紬 names a large silk fabric, while 綢 is glossed as winding or binding.

Why is 绸 in 绸缪?

In 绸缪 it means “to wind and bind,” not silk.

The pre-imperial Book of Songs (《诗经》), an early Chinese poetry collection, uses 绸缪束薪 for firewood wound into a bundle.

Inside 未雨绸缪, the phrase advises preparing before trouble arrives. In literary language, 绸缪 can also suggest being closely entwined; surrounding words settle the reading.

How are 帛, 绢, and 缎 related to 绸?

Silk terms name different kinds: 帛 is an older broad word for silk, 绢 names plain-weave silk, and 缎 names satin weave.

Silk cloth served clothing, decoration, and trade; weaving centers and techniques changed across Chinese dynasties, which helps explain why textile labels overlap.

By the Qing period, 紬 was written as 绸 and used broadly for ordinary silk goods. Simplified Chinese uses 绸, while traditional Chinese uses 綢—the same character in two writing forms.