What does strawboard mean?
Strawboard is a thick, stiff board manufactured from compressed straw pulp. It is valued for its strength, durability, and resistance to wear, and it was traditionally used for making book covers, boxes, and other sturdy containers. Although the material has largely been replaced by cardboard, hardboard, plastics, and other manufactured materials, it remains notable in bookbinding and historical contexts. The word refers specifically to a board whose principal fibres come from straw, rather than to ordinary paperboard made from wood pulp. In modern English, it is relatively uncommon, but recognizing it helps distinguish traditional bookmaking and packaging methods from their modern industrial replacements.
nounA thick, stiff board made from compressed straw pulp, traditionally used in bookbinding and for making boxes and other durable containers.
- A thick, stiff material made from compressed straw pulp, used especially for book covers and boxes.
"The old atlas was bound in strawboard."
"The encyclopedia's large volumes were protected by sturdy strawboard covers."
"She used strawboard to make a rigid container for the fragile object."
The plural is used when referring to multiple boards or distinct strawboard objects.
"The workshop stores old strawboards and discarded book covers."
Before modern plastics, tough book covers could be made from compressed agricultural straw.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does strawboard come from?
The word is a compound of English straw and board. Straw comes from Old English streaw, referring to dried cereal stalks, while board derives from Old English bord, originally a plank or flat piece of wood; the compound therefore literally describes a board made from straw.
How strawboard is actually used
The term is uncommon in contemporary general usage and is chiefly found in bookbinding, historical writing, and descriptions of traditional packaging materials.
Easily confused with strawboard
Hardboard is made from compressed wood pulp, whereas strawboard is made from processed straw.
Pasteboard is a general term for thick laminated paperboard, while strawboard specifically denotes board made from straw pulp.