# lint

/ˈɫɪnt/ (US) · /lˈɪnt/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/lint
Updated: 2026-08-27

## Senses

### 1. fabric fluff

noun · CEFR B2

small, soft pieces of thread or fiber that come off clothes and stick to things.

For teachers: accumulated fibrous material or fluff that detaches from fabric and clings to surfaces or collects in pockets.

- I used a sticky roller to remove the white lint from my black coat.
- The dryer's filter was completely clogged with grey lint after several loads of heavy cotton towels.

### 2. checking code

verb · CEFR C1 · Technical

to use a computer program to check your code for small mistakes or bad style.

For teachers: to perform a static analysis on source code to identify stylistic inconsistencies, potential bugs, or non-idiomatic patterns.

- You should lint your code before you submit it to the team.
- The automated pipeline will lint the entire repository to ensure all contributions adhere to the company's style guide.

Usage: The verb is transitive and usually takes the source code or the project as its object.

### 3. medical dressing

noun · CEFR C2 · Archaic · Technical

a soft material made from linen or cotton used to cover and protect a cut.

For teachers: a soft, fleecy material produced by scraping linen or cotton cloth, historically used as a surgical dressing for wounds.

- The old first-aid kit contained a small roll of sterilized lint.
- Before modern synthetic bandages were available, surgeons relied on charred lint to treat open wounds on the battlefield.

## Examples

- I always find a lot of lint in my pockets after washing my jeans.
- The developer spent the afternoon cleaning up the project folder by removing all the unnecessary lint files.
- While the physical lint from laundry is a minor nuisance, digital lint can significantly slow down a system's performance if not managed through regular maintenance and automated cleanup tools.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.